Carbon preserving fermentation

Comparative system analysis of carbon preserving fermentation for biofuel production

A challenge in the use of biomass for fuel production is loss of mass from the forest or field to the tank by production of carbon dioxide.  This loss has large impact on the overall feasibility of biofuels because it requires significant resources in land use and energy use in cultivation, harvesting and transportation of biomass.  If there were some manner in which the carbon could be preserved, significant savings in resources, e.g. up to one half of the land use, could be achieved.

The project proposes a novel, hybrid process that utilizes fermentation to preserve carbon by consumption of carbon dioxide followed by a chemical process to form a biofuel.

Participating partners in the project:

• Bio4Energy (Luleå University of Technology)
• Sekab E-technology
• Lund University