New Microbial Technologies for Advanced Biofuels : Toward More Sustainable Production Methods

This title includes a number of Open Access chapters.

The world needs renewable and clean forms of energy. Biofuels offer an alternative to fossil fuels, but first-generation biofuels had many challenges to be overcome. One strategy that second-generation biofuels are employing is microbial technology.

This compendium volume gathers together recent investigations within this vital field of research. It offers:

• An overview of the topic
• Investigations into the varieties of microorganisms useful for this technology
• Pretreatment methodologies
• Genetic engineering research that will further this technology

Internationally recognized experts contribute chapters on their individual areas of research within this vital field of study. The book offers an authoritative platform from which graduate students and scientists can build future investigations that will create still more advanced biofuels.

Dr. Juan Carlos Serrano Ruiz is currently a senior research scientist at Abengoa Research in Seville, Spain. He is licensed in chemical sciences by the University of Granada, Spain and received his PhD in chemistry and material science from the University of Alicante, Spain. He has visited many laboratories all around the world in his research on biofuel. He was a Fulbright Student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA, where he studied catalytic conversion of biomass. Upon his return to Spain, he accepted work at the Department of Organic Chemistry at the University of Cordoba, where he has continued his work with biofuels. He is the author of more than 50 scientific publications in international journals, including an article in Science Magazine on using sugar as a biofuel. He is also the coinventor of a patent taken out by the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation for the conversion of cellulose into diesel and gasoline.