gm technology as much about fuel as food

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    UK discovers a better bacteria for making ethanol
    By Susan Wilson
    September 12, 2008 |



    Usually discussions about biofuel improvements include the discovery of a new plant source to use for as feedstock. Not this time. This time the news is about the discovery by UK scientists of a better bacteria for turning all that plant matter into ethanol.

    Science Daily reported that scientists in Guilford, UK had developed a better bacteria for use in converting plant matter into ethanol. TMO Renewables Ltd. microbiologists tested a wide variety of naturally occurring bacteria looking for one that would survive the high temperatures used in the process for making ethanol.

    The scientists genetically changed a bacteria that they found in a compost heap. The bacteria normally creates lactic acid as it breaks down plant matter. By genetically tinkering with it, TMO microbiologists created a new bacteria called TM242. TM242 creates ethanol instead of lactic acid when it breaks down plants. Best of all the new bacteria loves heat.

    TM242 can turn a wide range of different plant feedstocks into ethanol much more quickly, cheaply and efficiently. Normally, creating ethanol from plant matter requires first heating the feedstock to turn it into mash, then cooling it so that yeast fermentation can occur and then it gets reheated to create ethanol. This new bacteria will cut down on the time and energy intensity of the process by skipping the cooling faze.

    The ethanol produced from the process can easily be blended with gasoline to stretch fossil fuel supplies and cut down on resulting air pollution. Turning only the 7 million tons of excess straw grown in England yearly, into ethanol will replace 10% of gasoline needs of the country. That doesn’t include all of the other waste products available for feedstock.

    TMO uses waste products "such as straw, wood, paper and plants and other cellulosic fibre from domestic and municipal waste" to make ethanol for biofuel production. This preserves food crops for eating while turning trash into something useful.

    So strides are being made in more areas of biofuel production than simply looking for new types of non-food feedstock. Developing this new bacteria for use in the process will save a significant amount of time and money.

    http://tech.blorge.com/Structure:%20/2008/09/12/uk-tmo-discovers-a-better-bacteria-for-making-ethanol/
 
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