Enzymes Can Help Turn Insect, Crustacean Shells Into Biofuel

In a paper published in yesterday's issue of the journal Nature Chemical Biology, a team of University of York researchers detail the discovery of a family of enzymes that are surprisingly efficient at breaking down so-called hard-to-digest biomass, i.e. plant stems, wood chips, cardboard waste and insect or crustacean shells.

In their paper, the scientists explain that, in time, their discovery is likely to translate into the development of new ways of turning organic matter into biofuels.

What's more, they say that these new methods of producing biofuels would be more environmentally friendly than the ones that have thus far been developed by researchers worldwide.

EurekAlert explains that, until now, the scientific community has managed to turn easy-to-digest food sources such as corn starch into eco-friendly energy sources dubbed first-generation biofuels.

However, this practice means that the biofuels industry must compete with the food industry for resources. On the long run, this is bound to affect both food and biofuels production, and the environment.

Hence, researchers are trying to figure out a way to produce so-called second-generation biofuels, i.e. eco-friendly fuels that are obtained from hard-to-digest biomass.

The only problem is that, for the time being, scientists have not yet pinned down an efficient and cost-effective way to break down organic matter that is a tad more resilient than corn starch and the like.

The family of enzymes studied by the University of York scientists is expected to help solve this problem and make it possible for researchers to develop processes that would turn hard-to-digest biomass into environmentally friendly fuels.

“There's no doubt that this discovery will have an impact on not only those researchers around the globe working on how to solve the problems associated with second generation biofuel generation, but – more importantly – also on the producers of bioethanol who now have a further powerful tool to help them generate biofuel from sustainable sources such as waste plant matter,” says Professor Paul Walton.