University of Maryland research has led to a process that may, say the researchers, be able to convert large volumes of all kinds of plant products into ethanol. Developed by University of Maryland professors Steve Hutcheson and Ron Weiner, the Zymetis process, is the foundation of their incubator company Zymetis.

When fully operational, says the team, the Zymetis process could potentially lead to the production of 75 billion gallons a year of ethanol. The process utilises a Chesapeake Bay marsh grass bacterium, S. degradans. Hutcheson found that the bacterium has an enzyme that could quickly break down plant materials into sugar, which can then be converted to biofuel.

The Zymetis researchers were unable to isolate the Bay bacterium again in nature, but they discovered how to produce the enzyme in their own laboratories. The result was Ethazyme, which degrades the tough cell walls of cellulosic materials and breaks down the entire plant material into biofuel ready sugars in one step, at a significantly lower cost and with fewer caustic chemicals than current methods.

"The new Zymetis technology is a win for the State of Maryland , for the University and for the environment," said University of Maryland President C.D. Mote, Jr. "It makes affordable ethanol production a reality and makes it from waste materials, which benefits everyone and supports the green-friendly goal of carbon-neutrality.

"It also highlights the importance of transformational basic research and of technology incubators at the University. Partnership with the State enables University of Maryland faculty and students to commercialize new discoveries quickly."

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