CHAPTER 3: Advances in the Measurement and Characterization of Biomass Structure and Processing

Lignocellulosic biofules are considered to be promising alternative energy sources. Cost-effective production of biofules is contingent upon a deeper understanding of biomass structure and molecular mechanisms to converting plant cell wall materials to fermentable sugars. Advanced tools have been used to characterize plant cell wall chemistry and structure at the nanometer scale, and to visualize interactions between cellulolytic enzymes and substrates, which have provided new insights into design of the bioprocessing and improvement of catalysts. Here, review is given to these advances in understanding biomass conversion processes using spectroscopic and imaging techniques, such as atomic force microscopy, fluorescence microscopy, Fourier transform infrared and Raman microspectroscopy, TEM and SEM.