Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Grain Science and Industry / Sajid Alavi / The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 has set the goal of 36 billion gallons of annual ethanol production in the U.S. by 2022, which is equivalent to 17.5% of the current gasoline consumption in the U.S. However, corn ethanol is expected to plateau at a level of 7.3% of current gasoline consumption on an energy-equivalent basis. Thus, it is essential to utilize a variety of substrates including lignocellulosic biomass from perennial energy crops such as switch grass, crop residues such as corn and sorghum stover, and agri-industrial co-products such as soybean hulls and wheat bran. Lignocellulosic substrates have a recalcitrant nature and require a pretreatment step that is critical for efficient enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose and hemicellulose to fermentable sugars. In this study, soybean hulls were used as a model substrate for cellulosic ethanol. A novel thermo-mechanical pretreatment process using extrusion was investigated and compared with two traditional pretreatment methods, dilute acid and alkali hydrolysis, with regard to structural changes in the lignocellulosic substrate, and glucose and ethanol yields. The effect of extrusion parameters, such as barrel temperature, in-barrel moisture and screw speed, on glucose yield from soybean hulls was determined. Optimum processing conditions were screw speed of 350 rpm, maximum barrel temperature of 80C and 40% in-barrel moisture content, resulting in 95% cellulose conversion to glucose. Compared with untreated soybean hulls, the cellulose to glucose conversion of soybean hulls increased by 69.5, 128.4 and 132.2% for dilute acid, alkali and thermo-mechanical pretreatments, respectively. Glucose and other hexose sugars such as mannose and galactose were effectively fermented by Saccharomyces cerevisiae, resulting in ethanol yields of 13.04–15.44 g/L. Fermentation inhibitors glycerol, furfural, 5-(hydroxymethyl)-2-furaldehyde (HMF) and acetic acid were found in the thermo-mechanically pretreated substrate, ranging in concentrations from 0.072–0.431, 0–0.049, 0–0.023 and 0.181–0.278 g/L, respectively, which were lower than those reported from acid hydrolyzed substrates. The economic feasibility of commercial cellulosic ethanol production processes employing dilute acid hydrolysis and thermo-mechanical pretreatment were compared using a system dynamics modeling approach. It was concluded that low feedstock cost and high sugar conversion are important factors that can make cellulosic ethanol production commercially viable. Thermo-mechanical pretreatment was a more promising technology as compared to dilute acid hydrolysis because of the lower capital and operating costs, and higher sugar conversion.

Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Increased demand of petroleum, declining fossil fuel reserves, geopolitical instability and the environmentally detrimental effects of fossil fuels have stimulated research to search for alternative sources of energy such as plant derived biofuels. The main feedstocks for production of first generation biofuels (bioethanol) are currently sucrose and starch, produced by crops such as sugarcane, sugarbeet, maize, and cassava. The use of food crop carbohydrates to produce biofuels is viewed as competing for limited agronomic resources and jeopardizing food security. Plants are also capable of storing sugars in their cell walls in the form of polysaccharides such as cellulose, hemicelluloses and pectin, however those are usually cross-linked with lignin, making their fermentation problematic, and are consequently referred to as lignocellulosics. Current technologies are not sufficient to degrade these cell wall sugars without large energy inputs, therefore making lignocellulosic biomass commercially unviable as a source of sugars for biofuel production. In the present study genes encoding for enzymes for cellulosic, hemicellulosic and starch-like polysaccharides biosynthesis were heterologously expressed to increase the amount of fermentable sugars in sugarcane. Transgenic lines heterologously expressing CsCesA, encoding a cellulose synthase from the marine invertebrate Ciona savignyi showed significant increases in their total cellulose synthase enzyme activity as well as the total cellulose content in internodal tissues. Elevation in cellulose contents was accompanied by a rise in hemicellulosic glucose content and uronic acid amounts, while total lignin was reduced in internodal tissues. Enzymatic saccharification of untreated lignocellulosic biomass of transgenic sugarcane lines had improved glucose release when exposed to cellulose hydrolyzing enzymes. Calli derived from transgenic sugarcane lines ectopically expressing galactomannan biosynthetic sequences ManS and GMGT from the cluster bean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba) were observed to be capable of producing a galactomannan polysaccharide. However, after regeneration, transgenic sugarcane plants derived from those calli were unable to produce the polymer although the inserted genes were transcribed at the mRNA level. While the ectopic expression of Deinococcus radiodurans amylosucrase protein in the cytosol had a detrimental effect on the growth of transgenic lines (plants showed stunted growth through the 18 months growth period in greenhouse), contrastingly targeting the amylosucrase protein into the vacuole resulted in 3 months old transgenic lines which were having high maltooligosaccharide and soluble sugar (sucrose, glucose and fructose) levels in leaves. After 18 months growing in the greenhouse, the mature transgenic lines were morphologically similar to the untransformed lines and also contained comparable maltooligosaccharide and soluble sugar and starch amounts. The non-biosynthesis of galactomannan and amylose polysaccharides in the matured transgenic plants may be due to post-transcriptional protein processing and or protein instability, possibly explainable by other epigenetic mechanisms taking place to regulate gene expression in the at least allo-octaploid species of sugarcane under investigation in this study.

Cellulose from energy crops or agriculture residues can be utilized as a sustainable energy resource to produce biofuels such as ethanol. The process of converting cellulose into solvents and biofuels requires the saccharification of cellulose into soluble, fermentable sugars. However, challenges to cellulosic biofuel production include increasing the activity of cellulose-degrading enzymes (cellulases) and increasing solvent (ethanol) yield while minimizing the co-production of organic acids. This work applies novel surface analysis techniques and fermentation reactor perturbations to quantify, manipulate, and model enzymatic and metabolic processes critical to the efficient production of cellulosic biofuels. Surface analysis techniques utilizing cellulose thin film as the model substrate are developed to quantify the kinetics of cellulose degradation by cellulase as well as the interactions with cellulase at the interfacial level. Quartz Crystal Microbalance with Dissipation (QCM-D) is utilized to monitor the change in mass of model cellulose thin films cast. The time-dependent frequency response of the QCM simultaneously measures both enzyme adsorption and hydrolysis of the cellulose thin film by fungal cellulases, in which a significant reduction in the extent of hydrolysis can be observed with increasing cellobiose concentrations. A mechanistic enzyme reaction scheme is successfully applied to the QCM frequency response for the first time, describing adsorption/desorption and hydrolysis events of the enzyme, inhibitor, and enzyme/inhibitor complexes. The effect of fungal cellulase concentration on hydrolysis is tested using the QCM frequency response of cellulose thin films. Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) is also applied for the first time to the whole cell cellulases of the bacterium C. thermocellum, where the effect of temperature on hydrolysis activity is quantified. Fermentation of soluble sugars to desirable products requires the optimization of product yield and selectivity of the cellulolytic bacterium, Clostridium thermocellum. Metabolic tools to map the phenotype toward desirable solvent production are developed through environmental perturbation. A significant change in product selectivity toward ethanol production is achieved with exogenous hydrogen and the addition of hydrogenase inhibitors (e.g. methyl viologen). These results demonstrate compensatory product formation in which the shift in metabolic activity can be achieved through environmental perturbation without permanent change in the organism’s genome.

Consolidated bioprocessing (CBP) provides a cost effective cellulose processing strategy, in which enzyme production, substrate hydrolysis, and fermentation of sugars to ethanol are all carried out in a single step by microorganisms. For industrial-scale bioethanol production, CBP-enabling microbes must be able to both efficiently degrade lignocellulosic material to fermentable sugars and synthesize bioethanol with high yields. Microbes with these properties have so far not been identified. Developing naturally occurring cellulolytic isolates with CBP-relevant properties requires a comprehensive understanding of their lignocellulosic hydrolysis mechanism and metabolism. In my quest to find a suitable organism for potential use in CBP, I took to investigate the under-characterized anaerobic bacterium, Clostridium termitidis strain CT1112. C. termitidis produces fermentative hydrogen and ethanol from a variety of lignocellulose derived substrates. I sought to investigate the metabolism of C. termitidis on different substrates and the mechanisms of substrate hydrolysis using a combination of microscopy, comparative bioinformatics, and ‘Omic (transcriptomic and proteomic) analyses. Comparative bioinformatics analyses revealed higher numbers of genes encoding carbohydrate active enzymes (CAZymes) with the potential to hydrolyze a wide-range of carbohydrates, and ‘Omic analyses were used to quantify the levels of expression of CAZymes, including endoglucanases, exoglucanases, hemicellulases and cellulosomal components. While cellulases and cellulosome components were highly expressed on cellulose, xylanases and glucosidases were predominantly expressed on pentoses, and chitinases (as well as cellobiose phosphorylases) were significantly up-regulated on cellobiose. In addition to growth on xylan, the simultaneous consumption of two important lignocellulose constituents, cellobiose and xylose was also observed. The ability to metabolize both hexose and pentose sugars is a highly desirable feature of CBP-relevant organisms. Metabolic profiles in association with ‘Omics analyses showed that hexoses and pentoses are consumed via the Embden-Meyerhof-Parnas and Pentose-Phosphate pathways, respectively, and that the genome content and expression profiles dictate end-product synthesis patterns. Genes and gene-products of enzymes in central metabolism and end-product synthesis were detected in high abundance under all substrate conditions, regardless of the amounts of end-products synthesized. The capabilities described thus far, identifies C. termitidis as a strain of interest for CBP. Further studies are, however, required for its development in to an industry-ready strain for biofuel production. / February 2016

Particleboard was invented to increase the utilization of wood and it soon became an important core material for furniture production. Nowadays, other industries such as the pulp and papermaking industry and the thermal energy recovery industry claim the same type of raw material. This leads to increasing competition and higher prices than in the past when that kind of wood raw material was widely available and of low price. The particleboard-producing industry is therefore seeking opportunities to reduce the competition and ensure the future supply of lignocellulosic raw material for their products. The purpose of the work summarised in this thesis was to investigate the strategic supply of lignocellulosic raw materials for particleboard production and to evaluate alternatives for the supply of lignocellulosic raw material for particleboard production. To encompass the complex field of strategic raw material supply, several publications have considered different stages along the supply chain. These papers range from empirical studies to practical tests on a laboratory scale. In this thesis, some of the papers are linked together, building the base for the overall results. The results show that the task of increasing the supply of lignocellulosic raw material as primary raw material source is limited by several factors, but that improved product design coupled with a suitable recycling concept can greatly increase the availability of lignocellulosic raw material as a secondary source. Alternatively, the use of non-wood plants might be an opportunity to substitute wood as raw material but there are still some problems relating to the particle properties which must be overcome first.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Grain Science and Industry / Praveen V. Vadlani / Microbial lipids derived from oleaginous yeasts are a promising alternative source of edible oils due to the following advantages: no requirement of broad lands; availability of year-round production; and no food versus fuels controversy. Oleaginous yeast has an inherent ability to accumulate lipids inside cells and their lipids are preferable as starting materials in oleo-chemical industries because of their distinct fatty acid composition. Lignocellulosic biomass is a promising substrate to supply carbon sources for oleaginous yeast to produce lipids due to the high content of polysaccharides and their abundancy. Lignocellulosic-based sugar streams, which can be generated via pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis, contained diverse monosaccharides and inhibitors. The major objectives of this study were: 1) to develop a novel purification method to generate clean sugar stream using sorghum stalks after acid pretreatment; 2) to optimize fermentation conditions for Trichosporon oleaginosus to achieve high yields and productivity of microbial lipids using lignocellulosic hydrolysates; 3) to investigate the potentials of sorghum stalks and switchgrass as feedstocks for microbial lipid production using oleaginous yeast strains, such as T. oleaginosus, Lipomyces starkeyi, and Cryptococcus albidus; 4) to develop an integrated process of corn bran based-microbial lipids production using T. oleaginosus; and 5) to develop bioconversion process for high yields of lipids from switchgrass using engineered Escherichia coli. In our investigation, major inhibitory compounds of lignocellulosic hydrolysates induced by pretreatment were acetic acid, formic acid, hydroxymethyl furfural (HMF) and furfural. The activated charcoal was effective in removing hydrophobic compounds from sorghum stalk hydrolysates. Resin mixtures containing cationic exchangers and anionic exchangers in 7:3 ratio at pH 2.7 completely removed HMF, acetic acid, and formic acid from sorghum stalk hydrolysates. T. oleaginosus was a robust yeast strain for lipid production. In the nitrogen-limited synthetic media, total 22 g/L of lipid titers were achieved by T. oleaginosus with a lipid content of 76% (w/w). In addition, T. oleaginosus efficiently produced microbial lipids from lignocellulosic biomass hydrolysates. The highest lipid titers of 13 g/L lipids were achieved by T. oleaginosus using sorghum stalk hydrolysates with a lipid content of 60% (w/w). L. starkeyi and C. albidus also successfully produced microbial lipids using lignocellulosic hydrolysate with a lipid content of 40% (w/w). Furthermore, corn bran was a promising feedstock for microbial lipid production. The highest sugar yields of 0.53 g/g were achieved from corn bran at the pretreatment condition of 1% acid and 5% solid loading. Microbial lipids were successfully produced from corn bran hydrolysates by T. oleaginosus with lipid yields of 216 mg/g. Engineered E. coli also effectively produced lipids using switchgrass as feedstocks. E. coli ML103 pXZ18Z produced a total of 3.3 g/L free fatty acids with a yield of 0.23 g/g. The overall yield of free fatty acids was 0.12 g/g of raw switchgrass and it was 51 % of the maximum theoretical yield. This study provided useful strategies for the development of sustainable bioconversion processes for microbial lipids from renewable biomass and demonstrated the economic viability of a lignocellulosic based-biorefinery.

Master of Science / Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering / Donghai Wang / Acid catalysts have been successfully used for pretreatment of cellulosic biomass to improve sugar recovery and its later conversion to ethanol. However, use of acid requires a considerable equipment investment as well as disposal of residues. Acid-functionalized nanoparticles were synthesized for pretreatment and hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass to increase conversion efficiency at mild conditions. Advantages of using acid-functionalized metal nanoparticles are not only the acidic properties to catalyze hydrolysis and being small enough to penetrate into the lignocellulosic structure, but also being easily separable from hydrolysis residues by using a strong magnetic field. Cobalt spinel ferrite magnetic nanoparticles were synthesized using a microemulsion method and then covered with a layer of silica to protect them from oxidation. The silanol groups of the silica serve as the support of the sulfonic acid groups that were later attached to the surface of the nanoparticles. TEM images and FTIR methods were used to characterize the properties of acid-functionalized nanoparticles in terms of nanoparticle size, presence of sulfonic acid functional groups, and pH as an indicator of acid sites present. Citric acid-functionalized magnetite nanoparticles were also synthesized and evaluated. Wheat straw and wood fiber samples were treated with the acid supported nanoparticles at 80°C for 24 h to hydrolyze their hemicellulose fraction to sugars. Further hydrolysis of the liquid fraction was carried out to account for the amount of total solubilized sugars. HPLC was used to determine the total amount of sugars obtained in the aqueous solution. The perfluroalkyl-sulfonic acid functional groups from the magnetic nanoparticles yielded significantly higher amounts of oligosaccharides from wood and wheat straw samples than the alkyl-sulfonic acid functional groups did. More stable fluorosulfonic acid functionalized nanoparticles can potentially work as an effective heterogeneous catalyst for pretreatment of lignocellulosic materials.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering / Wenqiao Yuan / Donghai Wang / Corncobs were used as the feedstock to investigate the effect of operating conditions and crude glycerol (solvent) on bio-oil production. The highest bio-oil yield of 33.8% on the basis of biomass dry weight was obtained at 305°C, 20 min retention time, 10% biomass content, 0.5% catalyst loading. At selected conditions, bio-oil yield based on the total weight of corn cobs and crude glycerol increased to 36.3% as the crude glycerol/corn cobs ratio increased to 5. Furthermore, the optimization of operating conditions was conducted via response surface methodology. A maximum bio-oil yield of 41.3% was obtained at 280°C, 12min, 21% biomass content, and 1.56% catalyst loading. A highest bio-oil carbon content of 74.8% was produced at 340°C with 9% biomass content. A maximum carbon recovery of 25.2% was observed at 280°C, 12min, 21% biomass content, and 1.03% catalyst loading. The effect of biomass ecotype and planting location on bio-oil production were studied on big bluestems. Significant differences were found in the yield and elemental composition of bio-oils produced from big bluestem of different ecotypes and/or planting locations. Generally, the IL ecotype and the Carbondale, IL and Manhattan, KS planting locations gave higher bio-oil yield, which can be attributed to the higher total cellulose and hemicellulose content and/or the higher carbon but lower oxygen contents in these feedstocks. Bio-oil from the IL ecotype also had the highest carbon and lowest oxygen contents, which were not affected by the planting location. In order to better understand the mechanisms of hydrothermal conversion, the interaction effects between cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin in hydrothermal conversion were studied. Positive interaction between cellulose and lignin, but negative interaction between cellulose and hemicellulose were observed. No significant interaction was found between hemicelluose and lignin. Hydrothermal conversion of corncobs, big bluestems, switchgrass, cherry, pecan, pine, hazelnut shell, and their model biomass also were conducted. Bio-oil yield increased as real biomass cellulose and hemicellulose content increased, but an opposite trend was observed for low lignin content model biomass.

Este trabalho teve como objetivo a prospecção e caracterização de enzimas fúngicas, que degradam a biomassa, visando à aplicação no biobranqueamento da polpa de celulose. Para isto, foram selecionados 13 fungos filamentosos da Micoteca e entre estes Aspergillus versicolor e A. brasiliensis foram aqueles que se sobressaíram quanto à produção de xilanase, amilase, CMCase, avicelase e ?-glucosidase. As melhores condições de produção enzimática corresponderam à utilização de bagaço de cevada como fonte de carbono em meio SR (Segato Rizzatti) para xilanase, amilase e ?- glucosidase e meio M5 para CMCase, avicelase e FPase, nos cultivos incubados por tempos variáveis de 72 a 168 horas. Para otimizar a concentração da fonte de carbono e a temperatura nos cultivos foi realizado um Delineamentro Composto Central Rotacional. Como resultante da otimização do bioprocesso foram obtidos os extratos brutos: (i) meio BSR, para a produção de xilanase por A. brasiliensis, com 96 horas de cultivo estático, a 30°C, com bagaço de cevada 3% em meio SR; (ii) Meio VSR para amilase e ?-glucosidase a partir do A. versicolor, com 120 horas de cultivo estático, a 35°C, com bagaço de cevada 3,41% em meio SR; (iii) Meio VM5 para CMCase, avicelase e FPase de A. versicolor com 120 horas de cultivo estático, a 30°C, com bagaço de cevada 2% em meio M5. Lacase foi produzida por Trametes versicolor (iv), cultivado por quinze dias em Fermentação Submersa estática, a 30°C, em meio contendo vinhaça e água destilada (1:5 v/v), 1% de algodão e 0,1% de peptona. Paralelamente, a produção de xilanases de A. tamarii Kita (v) com bagaço de cevada 2,9% foi otimizada em meio ADAMS por 129 horas (recebendo a denominação - meio TKADAMS). Quanto à caracterização das enzimas de A. versicolor (xilanase) e A. brasiliensis (demais enzimas) a temperatura ótima de xilanase foi 70°C; amilase 60-65°C; CMCase 65°C; avicelase 50°C; FPase e lacase 60°C e ?-glucosidase 70-75°C. Quanto à estabilidade térmica, xilanase mostrou-se com 60% de atividade relativa por até 24 horas à 40°C e 30 minutos à 50°C. A 60°C mostrou-se pouco estável. A amilase mostrou-se estável por 24 horas a 40 e 50°C, com 80% da atividade relativa. CMCase e FPase mostraram-se pouco estável nas temperaturas citadas. Avicelase apresentou ativação quando exposta ao aquecimento de 40, 50 e 60°C. ?-glucosidase foi estável a 40°C por até 24 horas, com atividade relativa de 80%; a 50°C apresentou 60% de atividade relativa por 180 minutos e a 60°C exibiu 40% por até 30 minutos. Lacase foi estável a 50°C, com um t50 de 60 minutos; a 60°C teve atividade relativa próxima de 30%, por até 240 minutos e a 70°C apresentou 40% de atividade por 30 minutos. Quanto ao pH, xilanase apresentou uma faixa ótima de 4,0-5,0 e também entre 7,0-8,0. Amilase, CMCase, avicelase, FPase, ?-glucosidase e lacase apresentaram atividades mais expressivas na faixa de pH 4,0-5,5. Com relação à estabilidade ao pH em 24 horas, xilanase foi mais estável nos pH 5,5-7,0, amilase nos pH 5,0-6,5, CMCase, FPase e lacase em pH 4,5, avicelase em pH 3,0 e ?-glucosidase em pH 5,0-5,5. Quanto ao efeito de íons, CMCase e ?-glucosidase foram ativadas por K+, Zn+ e Ba2+; CMCase, ?-glucosidase e lacase foram ativadas por NH4+ e Ca2+; amilase, CMCase, ?-glucosidase e lacase foram ativadas por Co2+; amilase, CMCase e ?- glucosidase foram ativadas por Al3+ e Fe2+; xilanase, avicelase, CMCase e ?-glucosidase foram ativadas por Mn+; avicelase e CMCase foram ativadas por Ag+; lacase por EDTA; ?-glucosidase e lacase por Mg2+, CMCase por Hg2+ e xilanase, ?-glucosidase e lacase por Cu2+. Os extratos foram utilizados na formulação de coquetéis enzimáticos para biobranqueamento da polpa de celulose. A aplicação dos extratos BSR, VSR, VM5 sobre a polpa marrom não resultou em uma redução significativa do número Kappa quando comparados ao controle, uma vez que todos os extratos apresentavam uma coloração muito escura, a qual fora originada por componentes e pigmentos provenientes dos meios de cultivo dos micro-organismos com bagaço de cevada e que, consequentemente, interferiram na determinação do número Kappa. Desta forma, o coquetel otimizado teve como formulação: 20,3 mL do meio TKADAMS e 10 mL do extrato do meio produtor de lacase para cada 4 gramas de polpa tratada, pH 5,5; 35,9ºC, 48 horas. Este tratamento resultou na redução de 1,83 pontos no número Kappa da polpa marrom, representando uma eficiência de 20,3%, e aumento de 4,65 na alvura, em relação ao controle. A aplicação do coquetel nos resíduos lignocelulósicos ocasionou a formação máxima de 85 mg/mL de açúcares redutores, em 24 horas no tratamento do bagaço de cevada, e 25 mg/mL de açúcares redutores, em 3 horas no tratamento do bagaço de cana. A aplicação do coquetel nas polpas de papel reciclado ocasionou um maior destintamento. A aplicação do coquetel desenvolvido na polpa de celulose, nos resíduos lignocelulósicos e fibras secundárias mostrou-se promissora para biobranqueamento, biodegradação e destintamento destes, respectivamente. A aplicação de enzimas no processo de biobranqueamento da polpa de celulose é uma alternativa viável e que auxilia a redução de custos, água, energia e colabora com o meio ambiente. A lacase foi importante no biobranqueamento da polpa de celulose sendo que o aumento da escala de produção do T. versicolor para biorreator levou a uma produção 6,25 vezes maior comparada aquela em Erlenmeyer, provavelmente devido a aeração constante / This work aimed to prospect and characterize fungal enzymes, which break biomass, looking for the cellulose pulp biobleaching application. For this, 13 filamentous fungi of the Fungi Library were selected and among them Aspergillus versicolor and A. brasiliensis were those that stood out as inducers of xylanase, amylase, CMCase, avicelase and ?-glucosidase production. The use of barley bagasse as carbon source was the best condition for xylanase, amylase and ?-glucosidase production in SR medium (Segato Rizzatti) and M5 medium was the best for CMCase, avicelase and FPase production, in cultures incubated for 72-168 h. In order to optimize the concentration of the carbon source and the temperature of the cultures, a Central Composite Rotational Design was elaborated. (i) BSR extract, in SR medium for the xylanase production by A. brasiliensis, 96 hours, in static culture, at 30°C with barley bagasse 3%; (ii) VSR extract, in SR medium, for the amylase and ?-glucosidase from A. versicolor, 120 hours in static culture, at 35°C, with barley bagasse 3.41%. (iii) VM5 extract, in M5 medium for CMCase, avicelase and FPase from A. versicolor, 120 hours of static culture, at 30°C with barley bagasse 2%. Lacase was produced by Trametes versicolor (iv), in a medium containing vinasse and distilled water (1:5 v/v), cotton 1% and peptone 0.1%, for 15 days at 30ºC. In parallel, the production of a xylanase from A. tamarii Kita (v) with barley bagasse 2.9% was optimized in ADAMS medium for 129 hours (designated - TKADAMS medium). The thermal stability study showed that xylanase was stable with 60% of relative activity at 40°C for up to 24 hours and for 30 minutes at 50°C. At 60°C the enzyme was poorly stable. Amylase was stable for 24 hours at 40 and 50°C, with 80% of relative activity. CMCase and FPase was poorly stable at all temperatures tested. Avicelase was activated by the exposure at 40, 50 and 60°C. ?-glucosidase was stable at 40°C for up to 24 hours, with 80% of relative activity; at 50°C it showed a relative activity of 60% for 180 minutes and at 60° it showed 40% of relative activity for 30 minutes. Laccase was stable at 50°C with t50 for 60 minutes. At 60°C it showed an activity of 30% for up to 240 minutes and at 70°C it showed 40% of activity for 30 minutes. As for pH, xylanase showed the best activity in a range of pH 4.0-5.0 and 7.0-8.0. Amylase, CMCase, avicelase, FPase, ?-glucosidase and laccase showed expressive activities in a range of pH 4.0-5.5. The tests of pH stability in 24 hours showed that xylanase was stable at pH 5.5-7.0, amylase at pH 5.0-6.5, CMCase, FPase and laccase at pH 4.5, avicelase at pH 3.0 and ?-glucosidase at pH 5.0-5.5. The effect of ions showed that CMCase and ?-glucosidase were activated by K+, Zn+ and Ba2+; CMCase, ?-glucosidase and lacase were activated by NH4+ and Ca2+; amylase, CMCase, ?-glucosidase and lacase were activated by Co2+; amylase, CMCase and ?-glucosidase by Al3+ and Fe2+; xylanase, avicelase, CMCase and ?-glucosidase by Mn+; avicelase and CMCase by Ag+; lacase by EDTA; ?-glucosidase e lacase by Mg2+, CMCase by Hg2+ and xylanase, ?-glucosidase and lacase by Cu2+. The extracts were used in the formulation of enzymatic cocktails for cellulose pulp biobleaching. The application of BSR, VSR and VM5 extracts on the brown pulp did not result on a significant reduction of the Kappa number when compared to the control, on account of the dark coloration of these extracts caused by the components and pigments from the cultivation with the microorganisms and barley bagasse, which as a consequence, interfered in the determination of the Kappa number. Thus, an optimized cocktail was formulated: for each 4 grams of treated pulp 20.3 mL of TKADAMS extract and 10 mL of laccase extract, pH 5.5; 35.9°C, 48 hours. This treatment resulted in the reduction of 1.83 points in the Kappa number of the brown pulp, representing an efficiency of 20.3%, and a brightness increase of 4.65 when compared to the control. The application of the cocktail in the lignocellulosic residues resulted in the formation of 85 mg/mL of reducing sugars in barley bagasse treatment for 24 hours and, 25 mg/ml of reducing sugars in sugarcane bagasse treatment for 3 hours. The application of the cocktail in the recycled paper pulps caused a greater deinking. The application of the formulated cocktail in the cellulose pulp, lignocellulosic residues and secondary fibres was promising for biobleaching, biodegradation and deinking, respectively. The enzyme application in cellulose biobleaching is a viable alternative, which helps reducing costs, water, energy and collaborates with the environment. Laccase was important in the cellulose biobleaching and the increase of its production by T. versicolor through bioreactor led to a production 6.25 times higher than that in Erlenmeyer, probably due to the constant aeration

Com o crescente aumento da demanda energética e a redução dos recursos fósseis, os biocombustíveis obtidos a partir de biomassa lignocelulósica emergem como uma importante fonte de energia alternativa e sustentável. A biomassa lignocelulósica é formada basicamente por celulose, hemicelulose e lignina, cujo agrupamento compõem a complexa matriz da parede vegetal. A celulose é o principal composto de interesse presente na biomassa, uma vez que pode ser quebrada em glicose e usada no metabolismo de microrganismos para a posterior produção de etanol combustível. No entanto, diversos fatores tornam a biomassa recalcitrante ao processo de conversão, o que eleva o custo de produção dos biocombustíveis. Nesse contexto, proteínas aditivas, como as Expansinas vegetais vêm ganhando grande destaque devido à sua capacidade de afrouxar a parede celular por meio do enfraquecimento da ligação entre os polissacarídeos de forma não covalente, o que diminuí o estresse da parede celular e facilita assim a quebra da celulose por enzimas específicas. Assim, o presente trabalho teve como objetivo identificar genes da superfamília das Expansinas em quatro espécies de gramíneas (Zea mays, Sorghum bicolor, Brachypodium distachyon e Saccharum spp.). As sequências nucleotídicas obtidas a partir de bancos transcriptômicos de cana-deaçúcar foram usados na construção de árvores filogenéticas, por meio das quais pode se inferir as relações de ortologia entre espécies e selecionar sequências com potencial aplicação biotecnológica na promoção da sacarificação enzimática, aumento de biomassa e resistência vegetal à estresse abiótico, sendo estes ShEXPA14, ShEXPA24, ShEXPB22, ShEXPL3, ShEXPA1- zm, ShEXPA33, ShEXPB28, ShEXPB3, ShEXPB21, ShEXPB25 e ShEXPB4. Adicionalmente, os genes de sorgo e cana-de-açúcar foram caracterizados quanto aos domínios e motivos conservados das Expansinas de plantas, identificando as diferenças estre as subfamílias que podem contribuir para a maior especificidade das ?-expansinas em parede celular de gramíneas. / With increasing energy demand and the reduction of fossil resources, biofuels obtained from lignocellulosic biomass emerge as an important source of alternative and sustainable energy. The lignocellulosic biomass is basically formed by cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, whose grouping makes up the complex matrix of the vegetal cell wall. Cellulose is the main compound of interest present in biomass since it can be broken down into glucose and used in the metabolism of microorganisms for the subsequent production of fuel ethanol. However, several factors make the biomass recalcitrant to the conversion process, which raises the biofuel production cost. In this context, additive proteins, such as vegetable Expansins have been gaining prominence due to their ability to loosen the cell wall by weakening the bond between the polysaccharides in a non-covalent way, which decreases the stress of the cell wall and thus facilitates the break of cellulose by specific enzymes. Thus, the present work aimed to identify nucleotide sequences of the Expansinas superfamily in four species of grasses (Zea mays, Sorghum bicolor, Brachypodium distachyon and Saccharum spp.). Sugarcane transcripts were used in the construction of phylogenetic trees, through which one can infer the relations of orthology between species and obtain sequences with potential biotechnological application in the promotion of enzymatic saccharification, biomass increase and plant resistance to abiotic stress, these being ShEXPA14, ShEXPA24, ShEXPB22, ShEXPL3, ShEXPA1-zm, ShEXPA33, ShEXPB28, ShEXPB3, ShEXPB21, ShEXPB25 and ShEXPB4. In addition, sorghum and sugarcane genes were characterized by the conserved domains and motifs of plant Expansins, identifying the differences between the subfamilies that may contribute to the greater specificity of the EXPB in the cell wall of grasses.