Purdue University

The Midwest Consortium for Biobased Products and Bioenergy is a group of four universities and three federal laboratories that have worked together since 1999 to expand and improve the technologies for conversion of plant material to industrial products: chemicals, plastics, fuels, power and many other products. The universities are Purdue, Illinois, Iowa State, and Michigan State, and the government laboratories are the USDA National Center of Agricultural Research Utilization (USDA NCAUR), Ames Laboratory, and Argonne Laboratory. The broad goals of the Consortium are to carry out research and development on bioprocessing technologies for corn, new forms of yeast for fermentation of both pentoses and hexoses to ethanol and bioproducts, crops specifically developed for biotransformation into industrial products, agriculturally- derived cellulosic materials for use as industrial fermentation feedstocks, and cellulose conversion technologies for co-product utilization in ethanol plants that already import cellulose-containing materials. Economic analysis of the impact of feedstock costs, processing technology, and regional needs on proliferation of renewable fuels and bioproducts in the Midwest is an integral part of the Consortium's work.

The members of the Midwest Consortium held their annual meeting at Iowa State University, on November 5-6, 2007. Part of the meeting included participation in Iowa State University's fifth annual Biobased Industry Outlook Conference, "Growing the Bioeconomy: Science and Policy for Next Generation Biorefining". This year's conference focused on a range of issues including a comprehensive view of the state of the bioeconomy, from pioneering breakthroughs in the plant sciences and innovative techniques in harvesting and storage to the critical analyses of biobased practices to ensure that they are sustainable and commercially viable. Other topics discussed include: the thermochemical conversion of bio-based feedstocks to oils and chemicals, to the kinds of policies that will be needed to enhance the long-term competitiveness of biofuels, ways to mitigate global climate change, integrate bioprocessing and animal agriculture, and recycle nutrients back into the soil. Please click on the links below to view the presentations by members of the Midwest Consortium.

Cellulose Conversion in a Dry Grind Facility
Michael Ladisch, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana
Bruce Dale, Michigan State University, E. Lansing, Michigan
Nathan Mosier, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana
Bruce Dien, USDA, Peoria, Illinois
Michael Cotta, USDA NCAUR, Peoria, Illinois
Brent Shanks, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa
Hans Blaschek, University of Illinois, Champaign, Illinois
Ed Larenas, Genencor, Palo Alto, California

Pathways for Development of a Biorenewables Industry
Chad Schell, Navarro Engineering
Gene Petersen, U.S. Department of Energy, Golden, Colorado
C. Riley, National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Enzymes in Development of Biorefinery
Mian Li, Edward Larenas, Alicia Jarnigan, and Colin Mitchison, Genencor, Palo Alto, California

Composition of Corn Dry-Grind Ethanol By-Products: DDGS, Wet Cake, and Thin Stillage
Young-mi Kim, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana
Nathan Mosier, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana
Rick Hendrickson, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana
Thaddeus Ezeji, University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, Illinois
Hans Blaschek, University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, Illinois
Bruce Dien, USDA, Peoria, Illinois
Michael Cotta, USDA/NCAUR, Peoria, Illinois
Bruce Dale, Michigan State University, E. Lansing, Michigan
Michael R. Ladisch, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana

Process Simulation of Modified Dry Grind Ethanol Plant with Recycle of Pretreated and Enzymatically Hydrolyzed Distillers' Grains
Young-mi Kim, Nathan Mosier, and Michael Ladisch, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana

Enzyme Hydrolysis and Ethanol Fermentation of Liquid Hot Water and AFEX Pretreated Distillers' Grains at High Solids Loadings
Young-mi Kim, Rick Hendrickson, Nathan Mosier, and Michael Ladisch, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana

Chemical Catalysts for Adding Value to Distillers' Grains
Brent Shanks, Jason Bootsma, and Janice Velazquez, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa

Economic Analysis of a Modified Dry Grind Ethanol Process with Recycle of Pretreated and Enzymatically Hydrolyzed Distillers' Grains
David Perkis, Wally Tyner, and Rhys Dale, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana

Ethanol Sustainability: Using Life Cycle Analysis to Design Better Futures
Venkatesh Balan, Seungdo Kim, and Bruce Dale, Michigan State University, E. Lansing, Michigan

Enzymatic Extraction of Sugars from AFEX and Liquid Hot Water Pretreated Distillers' Grains and Their Conversion to Ethanol
Mike Cotta, Bruce Dien, Xin-Liang Li, and Eduardo Ximenes, USDA NCAUR, Peoria, Illinois

Water Solubilization of DDGS via Derivatization With Phosphite Esters
Reed E. Oshel, Mecheril V. Nandakumar, Sameer Urgaonkar, David G. Hendricker, and John Verkade, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa

PURDUE UNIVERSITY - MIDWEST CONSORTIUM MEETING, "DEVELOPMENT OF SUSTAINABLE BIOBASED PRODUCTS AND BIOENERGY" - University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, IL, December 13, 2006

Establishment of dry-grind ethanol plants is growing rapidly in the U.S. Currently, dry-grind ethanol plants produce the majority of fuel ethanol (ca 70%) in the U.S. By-products from dry-grind ethanol include wet and dry distillers' grains with solubles. About 20 million metric tons of DDGS is expected to be produced in the U.S. in 2007/2008.

Some industrial experts are predicting that DDGS production in the U.S. will reach up to 25 million metric tons in a few years.

By finding more uses for DDGS, ethanol plants can improve their profitability and position themselves to withstand stronger competition (from the petrochemical industry).

Conduct research on the pretreatment fundamentals, enzyme catalysts, and microbial systems for converting both starch and cellulosic materials to ethanol at conditions consistent with the operation of a dry mill.

Develop comprehensive economic analysis models that incorporate uncertainty and impact of technological and market parameters on costs.

Carry out fundamental studies on the structure and function of hydrolytic enzyme, biomimetic, and organic catalysts with respect to the structure and function of the cellulose and hemicellulose in corn fiber and corn stover to enhance their conversion to sugar.

Partner with regional ethanol producers and government agencies to achieve sustainable systems for renewable bioenergy and bioproducts by defining engineering fundamentals for utilizing lignocellulosics and fiber materials as feed stocks in dry mills.

In an effort to facilitate dialogue and collaboration in the uses for DDGS, the Midwest Consortium invited dry millers and members of industry that produce ethanol and bio-diesel to the meeting in Champaign, Illinois. All of the slides that were presented at the meeting are posted here. Please click on the links to view them.

The following link is a poster by John Verkade, from Ames Laboratory, Iowa State University, that was presented at the Consortium meeting.

PURDUE UNIVERSITY - MIDWEST CONSORTIUM MEETING, "ADDING VALUE TO DG FROM DRY GRIND PROCESSES" - Indianapolis, Indiana, November 18, 2005

Establishment of dry-grind ethanol plants is growing rapidly in the U.S. Currently, dry-grind ethanol plants produce the majority of fuel ethanol (about 60%) in the U.S. By-products from dry-grind ethanol include wet and dry distillers' grains with solubles (DDGS). More than 7 million metric tons of DDGS is expected to be produced in the U.S. in 2005. Some industrial experts are predicting that DDGS production in the U.S. will reach up to 15 million metric tons in a few years. By finding more uses for DDGS, ethanol plants can improve their profitability and position themselves to withstand stronger competition (from the petrochemical industry). In an effort to facilitate dialogue and collaboration in the uses for DDGS, the Midwest Consortium invited dry millers and members of industry that produce ethanol and bio-diesel to the meeting in Indianapolis. The slides that were presented at the meeting are listed below. Please click on their links to view them.

The following presentation was not given at the Midwest Consortium meeting, but was prepared by a member of the Consortium, Wally Tyner, and is included here for your information.

28th Symposium on Biotechnology for Fuels & Chemicals, Nashville, Tennessee, April 30 - May 3, 2006

Members of the Midwest Consortium attended the 28th Symposium on Biotechnology for Fuels & Chemicals, in Nashville, Tennessee. Please click on the link below to view the slides from their presentations. Participating members were: Michael Ladisch, Nathan Mosier, Wally Tyner, Nancy Ho, and Mira Sedlak, from Purdue University; Mike Cotta, Bruce Dien, Xin-Liang Li, and Eduardo Ximenes, from USDA NCAUR; Hans Blaschek and Thaddeus Ezeji, from the University of Illinois; Bruce Dale and Balan Venkatesh, from Michigan State University; Brent Shanks, from Iowa State University; John Verkade, from Ames Laboratory; and Gene Petersen, from the Golden Field Office of DOE.

Two members of the Midwest Consortium, Rhys Dale and Wallace Tyner, from Purdue University, have prepared two reports regarding an economic and technical analysis of ethanol dry milling. To access these reports, please click on the links below:

MIDWEST CONSORTIUM FOR BIOBASED PRODUCTS AND BIOENERGY

Distillers Grains: On the Pathway to Cellulose Conversion (Editorial)

Pathways for Development of a Biorenewables Industry

Water Solubilization of DDGS via Derivatization with Phosphite Esters

Cellulose Conversion in Dry Grind Ethanol Plants

Composition of Corn Dry-Grind Ethanol By-Products: DDGS, Wet Cake, and Thin Stillage

Enzyme Hydrolysis and Ethanol Fermentation of Liquid Hot Water and AFEX Pretreated Distillers' Grains at High-Solids Loadings

Process Simulation of Modified Dry Grind Ethanol Plant with Recycle of Pretreated and Enzymatically Hydrolyzed Distillers' Grains

Enzyme Characterization for Hydrolysis of AFEX and Liquid Hot-Water Pretreated Distillers' Grains and Their Conversion to Ethanol

Hydrolysis of Oligosaccharides from Distillers Grains Using Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Mesoporous Silica Catalysts

Fermentation of Dried Distillers' Grains and Solubles (DDGS) Hydrolysates to Solvents and Value-Added Products by Solventogenic Clostridia

Economic Analysis of a Modified Dry Grind Ethanol Process with Recycle of Pretreated and Enzymatically Hydrolyzed Distillers' Grains

Life Cycle Assessment of Fuel Ethanol Derived from Corn Grain Via Dry Milling