Can Multiple Ions in an Ionic Liquid Improve the Biomass Pretreatment Efficacy?

Over the last few decades, efforts to transition global production of fuels and chemicals toward renewable carbon feedstocks have accelerated. A large portion these focused on valorization one most abundant sources, lignocellulose. Pretreatment lignocellulose is first critical step in this process. In study, novel ionic liquid (IL) systems consisting multiple ions known be effective at biomass pretreatment were tested woody grassy biomass. Molecular simulations experimental results established synergistic advantages combining specific individual components systems. For pine (woody) biomass, with combination imidazolium, cholinium, acetate, lysinate achieved 80% glucose 70% xylose yields high loading. sorghum an IL system comprising lysinate, palmitate not only enabled a 98% yield but was also found biocompatible one-pot configuration, producing biofuel precursor bisabolene using engineered strain yeast Rhodosporidium toruloides.