title: Application of a water jet system to the pretreatment of cellulose.
abstract: Plant cellulose is the most abundant organic compound on earth. Technologies for producing cellulose fiber or improving the enzymatic saccharification of cellulose hold the key to biomass applications. A technology for atomizing biomass without strong acid catalysis remains to be developed. The water jet is a well-known device used in machines (e.g., washing machines, cutters, and mills) that use high-pressure water. In this study, we examined whether a water jet system could be used to atomize crystalline cellulose, which comprises approximately 50% of plant biomass. The Star Burst System manufactured by Sugino Machine Limited (Sugino Machine; Toyama, Japan) is a unique atomization machine that uses a water jet to atomize materials and thereby places lower stress on the environment. After treatment with this system, the crystalline cellulose was converted into a gel-like form. High-angular annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy showed that the cellulose fibers had been converted from a solid crystalline into a matrix of cellulose nanofibers. In addition, our results show that this system can improve the saccharification efficiency of cellulases by more than three-fold. Hence, the Star Burst System provides a new and mild pretreatment system for processing biomass materials.
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Biomass Technology Research Center, 3-11-32, Kagamiyama, Higashi-hiroshima, Hiroshima 739-0046, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: Shinichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kitamura
authors.forename: Kazunori
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kawasaki
authors.forename: Tomoki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kato
authors.forename: Koichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Uegaki
authors.forename: Kota
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ogura
authors.forename: Kazuhiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ishikawa
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D018533:Biomass; D001704:Biopolymers / Q000737:chemistry*; D001709:Biotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D002482:Cellulose / Q000737:chemistry*; D004867:Equipment Design; D005782:Gels; D008422:Materials Testing; D008854:Microscopy, Electron / Q000379:methods; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission / Q000379:methods; D013997:Time Factors; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry; D014965:X-Rays
chemical_list: D001704:Biopolymers; D005782:Gels; D014867:Water; D002482:Cellulose