Biological production of alcohols

The use of fermentative microorganisms for efficient C2-C5 alcohol production from renewable feedstocks has been a subject of intense investigation over recent decades. While the physiology of microorganisms involved in alcohol production from first-generation feedstocks is well established, the utilization of microorganisms for the production of second-generation bioalcohols from complex biomass, such as lignocellulose, remains challenging. At present, there are no “all in one” bioprocessing organisms that have been used on an industrial-scale capable of both complex biomass conversions to fermentable substrates and fermentation to alcohols. Extensive investigations on bioalcohol-producing organisms and related processes have targeted challenges ranging from the conversion of feedstock biomass to fermentable substrates, process design, and organism improvements. Recent advances in the production of liquid fuel carriers such as ethanol, propanol, and butanol as well as branched-chain alcohols will be the subject of this chapter.