UNT BioDiscovery Institute Is One Step Closer to Sustainable Plant-Based Fuel

Energy, Federal Agency/Executive Branch, Feedstock, Feedstocks, Field/Orchard/Plantation Crops/Residues, R & D Focus, Tennessee, Texas, University/College Programs

March 12, 2022

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by Amy Brundeen (University of North Texas) … Helping plants produce C-lignin could lead to crops that are useful for creating an economically feasible plant-based jet fuel, among other applications. The latest findings from (Richrd) Dixon’s lab at UNT’s BioDiscovery Institute, published in the journal Science Advances, could help plant scientists get one step closer to that goal.

Lignin is the substance that makes plants woody and firm, making them stand upright. It contains building blocks that can be converted to biofuel, but the lignin found in most plants, a complex mixture of mainly G- and S-lignins, is difficult to process. C-lignin, found in the seed coats of plants such as cleome — also known as spider flower, has a molecular structure that is simpler to process, leading to higher-yields of breakdown products that can be converted to biofuels. Dixon and fellow researchers hope to engineer crops such as switchgrass or poplar to contain C-lignin instead of G/S-lignin — in the stems and leaves — so they could be grown as biomass crops that would be easy to process, leading to a sustainable bioeconomy for products such as jet fuel or other industrial products such as plastics.

The research is conducted in collaboration with Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Center for Bioenergy Innovation, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. Chen is the co-principal investigator on the project. It is part of the biotechnology industry’s goal to genetically modify crops to be more efficiently processed into valuable products and reduce the dependence on petroleum. READ MORE

Developmental changes in lignin composition are driven by both monolignol supply and laccase specificity (Science Advances)

Bioenergy scientists discover genetic pathway for better biofuel processing (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)

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