Surfactants in biorefineries: Role, challenges & perspectives

[Display omitted] •Surfactants are versatile assistant molecules for the key steps of biorefineries.•Surfactants enhance solubilization of lignin during pretreatments.•Hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass is improved by surfactant addition.•Surfactants promote enzyme stability and reduce enzyme dos...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Bioresource technology Vol. 345; p. 126477
Main Authors:	Sánchez Muñoz, Salvador, Rocha Balbino, Thércia, Mier Alba, Edith, Gonçalves Barbosa, Fernanda, Tonet de Pier, Fernando, Lazuroz Moura de Almeida, Alexandra, Helena Balan Zilla, Ana, Antonio Fernandes Antunes, Felipe, Terán Hilares, Ruly, Balagurusamy, Nagamani, César dos Santos, Júlio, Silvério da Silva, Silvio
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	England Elsevier Ltd 01-02-2022
Subjects:	Biofuels Biomass Biomass-pretreatment Bioproducts Enzymatic-hydrolysis Fermentation Hydrolysis Lignin - metabolism Surface-Active Agents Surfactants Bioproducts Biomass-pretreatment Surfactants Fermentation Enzymatic-hydrolysis
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Summary:	[Display omitted] •Surfactants are versatile assistant molecules for the key steps of biorefineries.•Surfactants enhance solubilization of lignin during pretreatments.•Hydrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass is improved by surfactant addition.•Surfactants promote enzyme stability and reduce enzyme dosage during hydrolysis.•Remaining surfactants from early biorefinery steps also enhance fermentation. The use of lignocellulosic biomass (LCB) as feedstock has received increasing attention as an alternative to fossil-based refineries. Initial steps such as pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis are essential to breakdown the complex structure of LCB to make the sugar molecules available to obtain bioproducts by fermentation. However, these steps increase the cost of the bioproduct and often reduces its competitiveness against synthetic products. Currently, the use of surfactants has shown considerable potential to enhance lignocellulosic biomass processing. This review addresses the main mechanisms and role of surfactants as key molecules in various steps of biorefinery processes, viz., increasing the removal of lignin and hemicellulose during the pretreatments, increasing enzymatic stability and enhancing the accessibility of enzymes to the polymeric fractions, and improving the downstream process during fermentation. Further, technical advances, challenges in application of surfactants, and future perspectives to augment the production of several high value-added bioproducts have been discussed.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-2 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-3 content type line 23 ObjectType-Review-1
ISSN:	0960-8524 1873-2976
DOI:	10.1016/j.biortech.2021.126477