Special Issue on "Biofuels"

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[Editors] [Call for Papers][Announced Papers] [Published Papers] [List of Keywords]

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Deadline for submissions is NEW: 31 October 2008

 Rationale for the special issue on “Biofuels R&D: Securing the Planet Future Energy Needs”

Dear Colleague,

The value of biomass as a sustainable source of energy and carbon has been heralded for years.

Despite the information available on enzyme systems and plant cell walls structure, application of this knowledge to biomass conversion into biofuels and useful chemicals has met with limited success.

The goal of this special issue is to examine the stand of the latest available technologies to ensure a sustainable commercial use of biomass wastes.

Papers can also be submitted to a new MDPI journal: Energies (http://www.mdpi.org/energies/)

Dr. Clifford Louime

Editor:

Guest Editor: Clifford Louime, Ph.D.
Research Associate, Grapes Breeding and Genetics, Center For Viticulture and Small Fruit Research

Florida A&M University, 6505 Mahan Drive, Tallahassee, FL 32315, USA
Tel: 850-412-7395, Fax: 850-561-2617, Email: clifford.louime@famu.edu
http://www.famu.edu/oldsite/acad/colleges/cesta/vit-faculty.htm 

Keywords:

Topics of special interest include, but are not strictly limited to, the following:

1- Biomass Characterization & Analysis:

1a. Characterization of biomass feedstock and products;

1b. Process design;

1c. Development of new methods and tools

2- Biochemical Conversion Technologies:

2a. Development of pretreatment technologies;

2b. Cellulase Enzyme Development: e.g. basic science underlying enzymatic hydrolysis;

2c. Strain Development: metabolic engineering techniques;

 3- Thermochemical Conversion Technologies:

3a. Gasification R&D;

3b. Pyrolysis processes;

4- Biobased Product & Development:

4a. Discovery, improvement, and development of conversion technologies;

4b. Novel separation technologies;

4c. Quantifying the quality and performance of biobased products;

The deadline for submissions is NEW: 31 October 2008

Submitted papers should not have been previously published nor be currently under consideration for publication elsewhere. All papers are refereed through a peer review process. A guide for authors, sample copies and other relevant information for submitting papers are available on the “Instructions for Authors” page.
The International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed monthly journal published by The Molecular Diversity Preservation International Press.

Call for Papers: download the call for paper message here

Announced Papers:

Published Papers:


Arjun B. Chhetri ¹, K. Chris Watts ² and M. Rafiqul Islam ^1,*
1 Civil and Resources Engineering, Dalhousie University, Room D510, 1360 Barrington St., Box 1000, Halifax, N.S. B3J 2X4, Canada; E-mail: kcarjun@gmail.com (for Arjun B. Chhetri)
2 Process Engineering, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Box 1000, Halifax, N.S. B3J 2X4, Canada; Tel. +1 (902) 494-3269; Fax +1 (902) 420-7639; E-mail: chris.watts@dal.ca
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-mail: rafiqul.islam@dal.ca
Received: 27 March 2008 / Accepted: 9 April 2008 / Published: 10 April 2008
Article: Waste Cooking Oil as an Alternate Feedstock for Biodiesel Production
Energies 2008, 1, 3-18 (PDF format 171 K); DOI: 10.3390/en1010003

See also papers published in another MDPI journal IJMS.

Leading Papers and Reviews:

• Adsul, M.G.; Bastawde, K.B.; Varma, A.J.; Gokhale; D.V. Strain improvement of Penicillium janthinellum NCIM 1171 for increased cellulase production. Bioresour. Technol. 2007, 98,1467-73. Epub 2006 Nov 13.

• Saha, B.C.; Cotta, M.A. Ethanol production from alkaline peroxide pretreated enzymatically saccharified wheat straw. Biotechnol Prog. 2006, 22, 449-53

• Rauscher, R.; Wurleitner, E.; Wacenovsky. C.; Aro, N.; Stricker, A.R.; Zeilinger, S.; Kubicek, C.P., Penttila, M.; Mach, R.L. Transcriptional regulation of xyn1, encoding xylanase I, in Hypocrea jecorina. Eukaryot. Cell,  2006, 5, 447-56. 
• Old, L.A.; Lowes S.; Russell, R.R. Genomic variation in Streptococcus mutans: deletions affecting the multiple pathways of beta-glucoside metabolism. Oral Microbiol. Immunol. 2006, 21, 21-7.
• Baker, J.O.; McCarley, J.R.; Lovett, R.; Yu, C.H.; Adney, W.S.; Rignall, T.R.; Vinzant, T.B.; Decker, S.R.; Sakon, J.; Himmel, M.E. Catalytically enhanced endocellulase Cel5A from Acidothermus cellulolyticus. Appl. Biochem. Biotechnol. 2005, 121-124, 129-48.
• Wang, T.; Liu, X.; Yu, Q.; Zhang, X.; Qu, Y.; Gao, P.; Wang, T. Directed evolution for engineering pH profile of endoglucanase III from Trichoderma reesei.
  Biomol. Eng. 2005, 22, 89-94.
• Chand, P.; Aruna, A.; Maqsood, A.M.; Rao, L.V. Novel mutation method for increased cellulase production. J. Appl. Microbiol. 2005, 98, 318-23.
• Zhou, W.; Irwin, D.C.; Escovar-Kousen, J.; Wilson, D.B. Kinetic studies of Thermobifida fusca Cel9A active site mutant enzymes. Biochemistry 2004, 43, 9655-63.
• Wilson, D.B. Studies of Thermobifida fusca plant cell wall degrading enzymes. Chem. Rec. 2004, 4, 72-82.
• Tellez-Valencia, A.; Sandoval, A.A.; Pedraza-Reyes, M. The non-catalytic amino acid Asp446 is essential for enzyme activity of the modular endocellulase Cel9 from Myxobacter sp. AL-1. Curr. Microbiol. 2003, 46, 307-10.
• Torney, F.; Moeller, L.; Scarpa, A.; Wang, K. Genetic engineering approaches to improve bioethanol production from maize. Curr. Opin. Biotechnol. 2007 [Epub ahead of print].
• Service, R.F. Cellulosic ethanol. Biofuel researchers prepare to reap a new harvest. Science 2007, 16, 1488-91. No abstract available.
• Escovar-Kousen, J.M.; Wilson, D.; Irwin, D. Integration of computer modeling and initial studies of site-directed mutagenesis to improve cellulase activity on Cel9A from Thermobifida fusca. Appl. Biochem. Biotechnol. 2004, 113-116, 287-97.
• Stephanopoulos, G. Challenges in engineering microbes for biofuels production. Science 2007, 315, 801-4.
• Schubert, C. Can biofuels finally take center stage? Nat. Biotechnol. 2006, 24, 777-84.
• Hahn-Hagerdal, B.; Galbe, M.; Gorwa-Grauslund, M.F.; Liden, G.; Zacchi, G. Bio-ethanol--the fuel of tomorrow from the residues of today. Trends Biotechnol. 2006, 24, 549-56. Review.
• Farrell, A.E.; Plevin, R.J.; Turner, B.T.; Jones, A.D.; O'Hare, M.; Kammen, D.M. Ethanol can contribute to energy and environmental goals. Science 2006, 311, 506-8.
• Sticklen, M. Plant genetic engineering to improve biomass characteristics for biofuels. Curr. Opin. Biotechnol. 2006, 17, 315-9. Review.
• Gray, K.A.; Zhao, L.; Emptage, M. Bioethanol. Curr. Opin. Chem. Biol. 2006, 10, 141-6. Review.
• Ragauskas, A.J.; Williams, C.K.; Davison, B.H.; Britovsek, G.; Cairney, J.; Eckert, C.A.; Frederick, W.J. Jr.; Hallett, J.P.; Leak, D.J.; Liotta, C.L.; Mielenz, J.R.; Murphy, R.; Templer, R.; Tschaplinski, T. The path forward for biofuels and biomaterials. Science 2006, 311, 484-9. Review.
• Yinbo, Q.; Zhu, M.; Liu, K.; Bao, X.; Lin, J. Studies on cellulosic ethanol production for sustainable supply of liquid fuel in China. Biotechnol. J. 2006, 1, 1235-40. Review.
• Jeffries, T.W. Engineering yeasts for xylose metabolism. Curr. Opin. Biotechnol. 2006, 17, 320-6. Review.
• Sticklen, M. Plant genetic engineering to improve biomass characteristics for biofuels. Curr. Opin. Biotechnol. 2006, 17, 315-9. Review.
• Percival Zhang, Y.H.; Himmel, M.E.; Mielenz, J.R. Outlook for cellulase improvement: screening and selection strategies. Biotechnol. Adv. 2006, 24, 452-81. Review.
• Ward, O.P.; Singh, A. Bioethanol technology: developments and perspectives. Adv. Appl. Microbiol. 2002, 51, 53-80. Review.
• Lynd, L.R.; Weimer, P.J.; van Zyl, W.H.; Pretorius, I.S. Microbial cellulose utilization: fundamentals and biotechnology. Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev. 2002, 66, 506-77. Review. Erratum in: Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev. 2002, 66, 739.
• Sun, Y.; Cheng, J. Hydrolysis of lignocellulosic materials for ethanol production: a review. Bioresour. Technol. 2002, 83, 1-11. Review.
• Mielenz, J.R. Ethanol production from biomass: technology and commercialization status. Curr. Opin. Microbiol. 2001, 4, 324-9. Review.
• Bayer, E.A.; Shimon, L.J.; Shoham, Y.; Lamed, R. Cellulosomes-structure and ultrastructure. J. Struct. Biol. 1998, 124, 221-34. Review.
• Davies, G.J. Structural studies on cellulases. Biochem. Soc. Trans. 1998, 26, 167-73. Review.
• Gray, K.A.; Zhao, L.; Emptage, M. Bioethanol. Curr. Opin.Chem. Biol. 2006, 10, 141-6. Review.
• Lin, Y.; Tanaka, S. Ethanol fermentation from biomass resources: current state and prospects. Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 2006, 69, 627-42. Review.
• Louime, C.; Abazinge, M.; Johnson, E.; Latinwo, L.; Ikediobi, C. Location, formation and biosynthetic regulation of cellulases in the gliding bacteria Cytophaga hutchinsonii. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2006, 7, 1-11.
• Louime, C.; Abazinge, M.; Johnson, E.; Latinwo, L. Sugarcane: Is it the new biocellulosic substrate for the biomass industry. Florida Scientist  2006, 69,  44-48.

Webmaster energies@mdpi.org. Updated on 16 June 2008