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Cellulosic Ethanol Makes Slow Commercial Progress, Business and Industry Trends Analysis

Traditional grain ethanol is typically made from corn or sugarcane.  In contrast to grain ethanol, “cellulosic” ethanol is typically made from agricultural waste like corncobs, wheat husks, stems, stalks and leaves, which are treated with specially engineered enzymes to break the waste down into its component sugars.  The sugars (or sucrose) are used to make ethanol.  Since agricultural waste is plentiful, turning it into energy seems a good strategy.  Cellulosic ethanol can also be made from certain types of plants and grasses.
The trick to cellulosic ethanol production is the creation of efficient enzymes to treat the agricultural waste.  Another challenge lies in efficient collection and delivery of cellulosic material to the refinery.  It may be more costly to make cellulosic ethanol than to make it from corn.  In any event, the U.S. remains far behind Brazil in cost-efficiency, as Brazil’s use of sugar cane refined in smaller, nearby biorefineries creates ethanol at much lower costs per gallon.



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