Fibrous materials and composites
Fibrous materials, compositions that include fibrous materials, and uses of the fibrous materials and compositions are disclosed. For example, the fibrous materials can be operated on by a microorganism to produce ethanol or a by-product, such as a protein or lignin.
1. A method of making a fuel, the method comprising:
mechanically treating a fiber source to provide a first fibrous material;
passing the first fibrous material through a first screen having an average opening size of about 1.59 mm or less to provide a second fibrous material; and
combining the second fibrous material with a microorganism, the microorganism utilizing the second fibrous material to produce a fuel selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, alcohols, organic acids, hydrocarbons, and mixtures thereof.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the alcohol is selected from the group consisting of methanol, ethanol, propanol, isopropanol, butanol, ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, 1, 4-butane diol, glycerin, and mixtures thereof.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the organic acid is selected from the group consisting of formic acid, acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid, valeric acid, caproic, palmitic acid, stearic acid, oxalic acid, malonic acid, succinic acid, glutaric acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, glycolic acid, lactic acid, γ-hydroxybutyric acid and mixtures thereof.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the hydrocarbon is selected from the group consisting of methane, ethane, propane, isobutene, pentane, n-hexane, and mixtures thereof
5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising sterilizing the second fibrous material prior to combining with the microorganism.
6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the sterilizing is performed by exposing the second fibrous material to a radiation source.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fiber source comprises a cellulosic or lignocellulosic material.
8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the cellulosic or lignocellulosic material is selected from the group consisting of wood, grasses, rice hulls, bagasse, cotton, jute, hemp, flax, bamboo, sisal, abaca, straw, corn cobs, coconut hair, and paper.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein utilizing the second fibrous material comprises fermenting a low molecular weight sugar derived from the second fibrous material.
10. The method of claim 9 wherein the microorganism comprises a yeast.
11. The method of claim 1 wherein the microorganism hydrolyzes the second fibrous material to provide a hydrolyzed material.
12. The method of claim 11 wherein the hydrolyzed material comprises one or more low molecular weight sugars.
13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the alcohol is selected from the group consisting of methanol, ethanol, propanol, isopropanol, butanol, ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, 1, 4-butane diol, glycerin, and mixtures thereof.
14. The method of claim 11 , wherein the organic acid is selected from the group consisting of formic acid, acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid, valeric acid, caproic, palmitic acid, stearic acid, oxalic acid, malonic acid, succinic acid, glutaric acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, glycolic acid, lactic acid, γ-hydroxybutyric acid and mixtures thereof.
15. The method of claim 11 , wherein the hydrocarbon is selected from the group consisting of methane, ethane, propane, isobutene, pentane, n-hexane, and mixtures thereof.
16. The method of claim 11 , further comprising sterilizing the second fibrous material prior to combining with the microorganism.
17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the sterilizing is performed by exposing the second fibrous material to a radiation source.
18. The method of claim 11 , wherein the fiber source comprises a cellulosic or lignocellulosic material.
19. The method of claim 18 , wherein the cellulosic or lignocellulosic material is selected from the group consisting of wood, grasses, rice hulls, bagasse, cotton, jute, hemp, flax, bamboo, sisal, abaca, straw, corn cobs, coconut hair, and paper.
20. The method of claim 11 , further comprising combining the hydrolyzed material with a microorganism and allowing the combination to ferment.
21. The method of claim 20 wherein the microorganism combined with the hydrolyzed material comprises a yeast.
22. The method of claim 11 wherein the microorganism comprises a bacterium or an enzyme.
23. The method of claim 1 wherein mechanically treating comprises shearing.
24. The method of claim 1 wherein mechanically treating comprises grinding or milling.
25. The method of claim 1 wherein the microorganism comprises a bacterium or an enzyme.