Sustainable alternative transportation fuels are in high demand
and are of interest as second-generation biofuels [1].
One such biofuel is biobutanol produced from non-food
biomass. Biobutanol is one of the main metabolic products
of acetone/butanol/ethanol (ABE) fermentation by solventogenic
clostridia. Biobutanol has demonstrated its superiority
to bioethanol in terms of energy density, engine compatibility
and safety, and has become the center of research as the next
generation biofuel since 2005 [2].
Raw material has been the most cost-intensive part of ABE
fermentation [3]. The cost of fermentation substrates contributes
to over 60% of the total production expenditures, so it
is crucially important, from a process economics perspective,
to identify inexpensive biomass feedstock that can be fermented
by Clostridium species [3]. A number of low-cost
fermentation substrates have previously been evaluated.
Reed (member of order Poales), an abundant and inexpensive
lignocellulosic biomass in Asia and Europe is yet to be investigated in terms of their potential for biochemical conversion
by Clostridium spp. to biobutanol and other solvents.
Around 70 million tons of reed are obtained annually, in which
Asia and Europe have the highest reed output [1,3]. The
planting areas for reed in China are more than 0.67 million
hectares, which provide a reed output of more than 3 million
tons. Reed has been used as raw material in the papermaking
industry for years because of its high cellulose content and
good fiber properties. Given its superior properties, reed may
be considered a good alternative raw material for biobutanol
production.