14 DAY TRIAL // Using gene recombination technology, Toyota Motor Corporation announced it has developed a new strain of yeast that plays an important role in the fermentation process for producing cellulosic ethanol.
The company managed to developed an yeast that is highly resistant to such fermentation-inhibiting substances as acetic acid.
As a result, the yeast has achieved one of the highest ethanol fermentation density levels in the world. TMC aims to use it to improve bio-fuel yield and reduce production costs.
Research is also underway on developing comprehensive technologies for the various processes involved in producing cellulosic ethanol, including raw material pretreatment, enzymatic saccharification and yeast fermentation.
Aiming to achieve production-cost parity with other liquid fuels such as gasoline, TMC is also looking to achieve a stable supply of raw-material plant fibers as well as technologies that reduce production costs. Ultimately, the company plans to further improve bio-fuel production yield and to cooperate with energy companies to realize its goal of commercializing cellulosic ethanol by 2020.
In addition to the newly developed yeast that increases the production yield of cellulosic ethanol bio-fuel, TMC is also working on new technologies for the greening of parking lots and walls, and a new “cool-spot creation technology” for simulating and analyzing the effects of greening.
Two newly developed urban greening products – Smart Green Parking and a new wire-based Smart Green Wall – will be sold through the Toyota Roof Garden Corporation, starting today.
Smart Green Parking comprises main panels made of bricks and path-reinforcement material plus green plants.
The system uses recycled car bumper materials to create an earthen base wide enough to allow a durable space for long lasting plant growth while specially developed blocks ensure both plant sustainability and surface safety.
Smart Green Wall systems consist of wire rolls, wire tension and end adjusters supporting climbing plants in a low-maintenance permanent installation.
Lightweight ladder-shaped wires are easily climbed by plants and are very simple to install on buildings. Wire tension adjustment functions reduce wind-caused fluttering, creating high wind resistance.
On hot summer days, the plants reportedly reduce electricity use for indoor air conditioning by approximately 25% compared to a building without green walls.
Finally, TMC is also developing "cool-spot creation technology" for simulating the effects of greening and predicting the cooling effects of shade and transpiration created by trees.
Pairing this model together with thermal environmental simulators, they hope to achieve a visual simulation of greening effects to determine the types, numbers, and placement of trees needed to achieve the desired cooling effect. This technology is aimed for commercialization by the end of 2012.