Partnership to Optimize Sugarcane Bagasse Conversion into Ethanol

The US Energy Department-funded National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has entered into a cooperative agreement with Ecopetrol, the largest oil company in Colombia, to convert sugarcane residue into ethanol fuel.

In the said agreement, Ecopetrol will tap the capability of NREL on biomass conversion and techno-economic analysis, as well as its state-of-the-art facilities, to optimize the conversion process for bagasse, the leftover residue after the sugars are extracted from the sugarcane stalks.

Sugarcane is one of the most abundant biomass sources in Colombia. The bagasse by-product is typically burned to produce steam for power generation. Ecopetrol is now looking at commercial production of ethanol from bagasse because in this way, sugarcane workers can use the unproductive rainy season to process the bagasse stored in their facility.

Ecopetrol has a fermentation facility for converting sugarcane juice into fuel-grade ethanol which could also be used to hydrolyze the bagasse and ferment the resulting sugars into additional ethanol. The challenge lies in the conversion of cellulose trapped within the bagasse material into ethanol. NREL will assist in the optimization of the pretreatment process in order to efficiently deconstruct the bagasse and make the product ready for enzymatic processes.