Japanese researchers improve bamboo cellulosic conversion by 37X; bamboo could supply up to 58 Mgy of Japanese ethanol by 2030

In Japan, a research team at Shizuoka University has developed new techniques for conversion of bamboo to ethanol. The team has developed a means of improving the efficiency of conversion of cellulose to glucose by 2 percent to 75 percent, and expects to raise that result to 80 percent in the future. The team said that its process reduces the cost of bamboo ethanol production to $4.18 per gallon, based on the 80 percent conversion efficiency. The technology depends on using lasers, among other techniques, to remove lignin. The team estimates that bamboo can supply of to 58 million gallons of ethanol on a sustainable basis, or 10 percent of Japan’s 2030 ethanol goal.

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