U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, visits Renmatix's world tech center near Philadelphia in January 2013
By Kristin
Peterson, CenUSA Bioenergy Communications Team Intern
It’s no
secret that converting perennial grasses into biofuels or consumer paper products
takes a lot of work. So how is it that perennial grasses could be made into
usable products and go from raw material to production plant? Renmatix, who
prides itself on being “the bridge to renewable materials”, is working with
CenUSA to build that bridge for perennial grasses.
Farmers are
innovators and are always looking for the next new way to use their crops to make
products or produce energy. Agronomists, plant breeders and engineers at CenUSA
have been looking at potential commercial applications for switchgrass ranging from
forage to advanced transportation fuels. In the fourth year of this five-year
project, CenUSA has started investigating commercial opportunities for
perennial grasses beyond biofuels, broadening the research focus to include
searching for profitable intermediate markets that provide opportunities beyond
fuel production.
With sustainable
innovation a key to a greener future, CenUSA Bioenergy has started working with
a new company, Renmatix whose focus is enabling partners to convert “Biomass to
Sugar Faster and Cheaper. Really.” For entrepreneurs looking to solve the
energy challenge with alternative fuel sources and hoping to make a return on
their crop, Renmatix may offer a way to create additional chains opportunities
with the biofuels supply chain.
The research
collaboration between Renmatix and CenUSA is exploring near-term commercial
opportunities involving perennial grasses and the production of cellulosic
sugars extracted from biomass. If successful, Renmatix and CenUSA would add
opportunities for producers investing in perennial grass crops and help
construct a bridge to renewable fuels from these grasses.
How does
switchgrass go from raw material at the farm to something profitable and
usuable? That is where Renmatix comes into the equation. Renmatix is an innovative
bioindustrial company licensing conversion technology taking lignocellulosic
materials and economically and efficiently extracting sugars. Renmatix uses its
own Plantrose™ process to convert biomass
materials, such as perennial grasses provided by CenUSA, into cellulosic sugars
and lignin. The sugars can then be processed downstream into products like
ethanol or plastics.
“We will take
the biomass samples from CenUSA and conduct analyses to determine their
suitability for cost effective cellulosic sugar production,” said Frank
Lipiecki, Research and Development Director of Renmatix.
Several companies are exploring
moving away from petroleum-based products and focusing on renewable routes and
product substitution. Renmatix and BASF, the world’s leading chemical company,
have a JDA (joint development agreement) in place for licensing multiple
biorefineries that will produce renewable chemicals. Renmatix also works to
support consumer-facing companies like Coca-Cola in their sustainability
commitments via initiatives such as further development of renewable plantbottle™ packaging.
Using biomass
feedstock provided by CenUSA, Renmatix will run tests to determine the economic
feasibility of converting switchgrass and corn stover into sugars.
“They will
take all those different feedstocks that are being developed as part of the
project and they will do some benchmark analysis and that will give them an
idea of feasibility, how it might impact the process, how they might have to
change conditions,” said Ryan Smith, Deputy director of CenUSA’s thermochemical
research program.
CenUSA will
be providing Liberty switchgrass, big bluestem, a low diversity grass mixture,
Indiangrass, and an experimental bioenergy big bluestem cultivar, as well as
corn stover to Renmatix starting in the fall of 2014.
“In addition
to different feedstocks, we will provide perennial grasses (Liberty
switchgrass, big bluestem, and a low diversity grass mixture) harvested during
the growing season and after a killing frost,” said research agronomist Rob
Mitchell.
The lignin
co-product will be sent back to Iowa State University’s Bioeconomy Institute’s
Biorenewables Lab and CenUSA for further research.
By working
with Renmatix, CenUSA is looking forward to a future where renewable chemicals
and fuels will be produced from a biorenewable source – perennial grasses.
