Sugarcane ethanol is produced at large scale generating wastes that could be used for microalgae biomass production in a biorefinery strategy. In this study, forty microalgae strains were screened for growth in sugarcane vinasse at different concentrations. Two microalgae strains, Micractinium sp. Embrapa|LBA32 and C. biconvexa Embrapa|LBA40, presented vigorous growth in a light-dependent manner even in undiluted vinasse under non-axenic conditions. Microalgae strains presented higher biomass productivity in vinasse-based media compared to standard Bold's Basal Medium in cultures performed using 15L airlift flat plate photobioreactors. Chemical composition analyses showed that proteins and carbohydrates comprise the major fractions of algal biomass. Glucose was the main monosaccharide detected, ranging from 46% to 76% of the total carbohydrates content according to the strain and culture media used. This research highlights the potential of using residues derived from ethanol plants to cultivate microalgae for the production of energy and bioproducts.

Biorefineries have the potential to meet a significant part of the growing demand for energy, fuels, chemicals and materials worldwide. Indeed, the bio-based industry is expected to play a major role in energy security and climate change mitigation during the 21th century. Despite this, there are challenges related to resource consumption, processing optimization and waste minimization that still need to be overcome. In this context, microalgae appear as a promising non-edible feedstock with advantages over traditional land crops, such as high productivity, continuous harvesting throughout the year and minimal problems regarding land use. Importantly, both cultivation and microalgae processing can take place at the same site, which increases the possibilities for process integration and a reduction in logistic costs at biorefinery facilities. This review describes the actual scenario for microalgae biorefineries integration to the biofuels and petrochemical industries in Brazil, while highlighting the major challenges and recent advances in microalgae large-scale production.

No abstract

No abstract

This study presents data on the production, purification, and properties of a thermostable β-xylanase produced by an Aspergillus awamori 2B.361 U2/1 submerged culture using wheat bran as carbon source. Fractionation of the culture filtrate by membrane ultrafiltration followed by Sephacryl S-200 and Q-Sepharose chromatography allowed for the isolation of a homogeneous xylanase (PXII-1), which was 32.87 kDa according to MS analysis. The enzyme-specific activity towards soluble oat spelt xylan, which was found to be 490 IU/mg under optimum reaction conditions (50°C and pH 5.0-5.5), was 17-fold higher than that measured in the culture supernatant. Xylan reaction products were identified as xylobiose, xylotriose, and xylotetraose. K (m) values (mg ml(-1)) for soluble oat spelt and birchwood xylan were 11.8 and 9.45, respectively. Although PXII-1 showed 85% activity retention upon incubation at 50 °C and pH 5.0 for 20 days, incubation at pH 7.0 resulted in 50% activity loss within 3 days. PXII-1 stability at pH 7.0 was improved in the presence of 20 mM cysteine, which allowed for 85% activity retention for 25 days. This study on the production in high yields of a remarkably thermostable xylanase is of significance due to the central role that this class of biocatalyst shares, along with cellulases, for the much needed enzymatic hydrolysis of biomass. Furthermore, stable xylanases are important for the manufacture of paper, animal feed, and xylooligosaccharides.

No abstract

Holocellulose structures from agro-industrial residues rely on main and side chain attacking enzymes with different specificities for complete hydrolysis. Combinations of crude enzymatic extracts from different fungal species, including Aspergillus terreus, Aspergillus oryzae, Aspergillus niger and Trichoderma longibrachiatum, were applied to sugar cane bagasse, banana stem and dirty cotton residue to investigate the hydrolysis of holocellulose structures. A. terreus and A. oryzae were the best producers of FPase and xylanase activities. A combination of A. terreus and A. oryzae extracts in a 50% proportion provided optimal hydrolysis of dirty cotton residue and banana stem. For the hydrolysis of sugar cane bagasse, the best results were obtained with samples only containing A. terreus crude extract.

No abstract