Yunqiao Pu

Oak Ridge National Laboratory

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Arthur J. Ragauskas

University of Tennessee at Knoxville

Xianzhi Meng

University of Tennessee at Knoxville

Chang Geun Yoo

SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Mi Li

University of Tennessee at Knoxville

Charles E. Wyman

University of California, Riverside

Timothy J. Tschaplinski

Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Gerald A. Tuskan

Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Samarthya Bhagia

University of California, Riverside

Brian H. Davison

Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Charles M. Cai

University of California, Riverside

Cooperative Institutions

Oak Ridge National Laboratory

113

University of Tennessee at Knoxville

Oak Ridge Associated Universities

Georgia Institute of Technology

Bioenergy Life Science (United States)

Texas A&M University

Chinese Academy of Sciences

Knoxville College

National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Noble Research Institute

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Effect of torrefaction on biomass structure and hydrocarbon production from fast pyrolysis

Green Chemistry (2015)

Sneha Neupane Sushil Adhikari Z. Wang Arthur J. Ragauskas Yunqiao Pu

Torrefaction has been shown to improve the chemical composition of bio-oils produced from fast pyrolysis by lowering its oxygen content and enhancing the aromatic yield.

Torrefaction

10.1039/c4gc02383h

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Citations (127)

Dynamic changes in transcriptome and cell wall composition underlying brassinosteroid-mediated lignification of switchgrass suspension cells

Biotechnology for Biofuels (2017)

Xiaolan Rao Hui Shen Sivakumar Pattathil Michael G. Hahn Ivana Gelineo‐Albersheim

Plant cell walls contribute the majority of plant biomass that can be used to produce transportation fuels. However, the complexity and variability in composition and structure of cell walls, particularly the presence of lignin, negatively impacts their deconstruction for bioenergy. Metabolic and genetic changes associated with secondary wall development in the biofuel crop switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) have yet to be reported. Our previous studies have established a cell suspension system for switchgrass, in which cell wall lignification can be induced by application of brassinolide (BL). We have now collected cell wall composition and microarray-based transcriptome profiles for BL-induced and non-induced suspension cultures to provide an overview of the dynamic changes in transcriptional reprogramming during BL-induced cell wall modification. From this analysis, we have identified changes in candidate genes involved in cell wall precursor synthesis, cellulose, hemicellulose, and pectin formation and ester-linkage generation. We have also identified a large number of transcription factors with expression correlated with lignin biosynthesis genes, among which are candidates for control of syringyl (S) lignin accumulation. Together, this work provides an overview of the dynamic compositional changes during brassinosteroid-induced cell wall remodeling, and identifies candidate genes for future plant genetic engineering to overcome cell wall recalcitrance.

Secondary cell wall

Brassinosteroid

Xyloglucan

Panicum virgatum

Hemicellulose

10.1186/s13068-017-0954-2

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Citations (44)

Systems biology-guided biodesign of consolidated lignin conversion

Green Chemistry (2016)

Lu Lin Yanbing Cheng Yunqiao Pu Su Sun Xiao Li

Lignin is the second most abundant biopolymer on the earth, yet its utilization for fungible products is complicated by its recalcitrant nature and remains a major challenge for sustainable lignocellulosic biorefineries.

Biopolymer

10.1039/c6gc01131d

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Citations (137)

Characterization of fractional cuts of co-solvent enhanced lignocellulosic fractionation lignin isolated by sequential precipitation

Bioresource Technology (2018)

Xianzhi Meng Aakash Parikh Bhogeswararao Seemala Rajeev Kumar Yunqiao Pu

Lignocellulosic Biomass

Ethanol precipitation

10.1016/j.biortech.2018.09.130

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Citations (85)

Changes in Cell Wall Properties Coincide with Overexpression of Extensin Fusion Proteins in Suspension Cultured Tobacco Cells

PLoS ONE (2014)

Li Tan Yunqiao Pu Sivakumar Pattathil Utku Avcı Jin Qian

Extensins are one subfamily of the cell wall hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins, containing characteristic SerHyp4 glycosylation motifs and intermolecular cross-linking motifs such as the TyrXaaTyr sequence. Extensins are believed to form a cross-linked network in the plant cell wall through the tyrosine-derivatives isodityrosine, pulcherosine, and di-isodityrosine. Overexpression of three synthetic genes encoding different elastin-arabinogalactan protein-extensin hybrids in tobacco suspension cultured cells yielded novel cross-linking glycoproteins that shared features of the extensins, arabinogalactan proteins and elastin. The cell wall properties of the three transgenic cell lines were all changed, but in different ways. One transgenic cell line showed decreased cellulose crystallinity and increased wall xyloglucan content; the second transgenic cell line contained dramatically increased hydration capacity and notably increased cell wall biomass, increased di-isodityrosine, and increased protein content; the third transgenic cell line displayed wall phenotypes similar to wild type cells, except changed xyloglucan epitope extractability. These data indicate that overexpression of modified extensins may be a route to engineer plants for bioenergy and biomaterial production.

Xyloglucan

Arabinogalactan

10.1371/journal.pone.0115906

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Citations (10)

Sustainable Aviation Fuels from Biomass and Biowaste via Bio- and Chemo-Catalytic Conversion: Catalysis, Process Challenges, and Opportunities

Green Energy & Environment (2024)

Junyan Zhang Matthew S. Webber Yunqiao Pu Zhenglong Li Xianzhi Meng

10.1016/j.gee.2024.09.003

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Citations (1)

Non‐Solvent Fractionation of Lignin Enhances Carbon Fiber Performance

ChemSusChem (2019)

Qiang Li Mengjie Li Hao‐Sheng Lin Cheng Hu Phuc Truong

Even though lignin carbon fiber has been sought after for several decades, the poor mechanical performance remains to be a major barrier for commercial applications. The low mechanical performance is attributed to the heterogeneity of lignin polymer. Recent advances in fractionation technologies showed the great potential to reduce lignin heterogeneity, but current fractionation methods often depend on costly chemicals and materials such as enzymes, organic solvents, membranes, and dialysis tubes. Here, a new non-solvent strategy was developed to fractionate lignin by autohydrolysis. By using only water, lignin was efficiently fractionated into water-soluble and -insoluble fractions. The latter fraction had increased molecular weight and uniformity and resulted in more β-O-4 interunitary linkages as analyzed by size-exclusion chromatography and 2D heteronuclear single quantum coherence NMR spectroscopy, respectively. In particular, the water-insoluble fraction significantly enhanced the mechanical performances of the resultant carbon fibers. Mechanistic study by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) revealed that the miscibility of lignin with guest polyacrylonitrile molecules was improved with the reduced lignin heterogeneity. Crystallite analyses by XRD and Raman spectroscopy revealed that the crystallite size and content of the pre-graphitic turbostratic carbon structure were increased. The fundamental understanding revealed how lignin fractionation could modify lignin chemical features to enhance the mechanical performance of resultant carbon fibers. The autohydrolysis fractionation thus represents a green, economic, and efficient methodology to process lignin waste and boost lignin carbon fiber quality, which could open new horizons for lignin valorization.

Organosolv

Carbon fibers

Polyacrylonitrile

10.1002/cssc.201901052

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Citations (23)

An In‐Depth Understanding of Biomass Recalcitrance Using Natural Poplar Variants as the Feedstock

ChemSusChem (2016)

Xianzhi Meng Yunqiao Pu Chang Geun Yoo Mi Li Garima Bali

In an effort to better understand the biomass recalcitrance, six natural poplar variants were selected as feedstocks based on previous sugar release analysis. Compositional analysis and physicochemical characterizations of these poplars were performed and the correlations between these physicochemical properties and enzymatic hydrolysis yield were investigated. Gel permeation chromatography (GPC) and 13 C solid state NMR were used to determine the degree of polymerization (DP) and crystallinity index (CrI) of cellulose, and the results along with the sugar release study indicated that cellulose DP likely played a more important role in enzymatic hydrolysis. Simons' stain revealed that the accessible surface area of substrate significantly varied among these variants from 17.3 to 33.2 mg g-1biomass as reflected by dye adsorption, and cellulose accessibility was shown as one of the major factors governing substrates digestibility. HSQC and 31 P NMR analysis detailed the structural features of poplar lignin variants. Overall, cellulose relevant factors appeared to have a stronger correlation with glucose release, if any, than lignin structural features. Lignin structural features, such as a phenolic hydroxyl group and the ratio of syringyl and guaiacyl (S/G), were found to have a more convincing impact on xylose release. Low lignin content, low cellulose DP, and high cellulose accessibility generally favor enzymatic hydrolysis; however, recalcitrance cannot be simply judged on any single substrate factor.

Enzymatic Hydrolysis

Gel permeation chromatography

Degree of polymerization

10.1002/cssc.201601303

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Citations (130)

Lignin‐derived electrochemical energy materials and systems

Biofuels Bioproducts and Biorefining (2020)

Xiaoyu Wu Junhua Jiang Chongmin Wang Jian Liu Yunqiao Pu

Abstract Electrode and electrolyte materials with higher performance, longer life, and lower cost need to be developed, given the substantial growing demand for advanced electrochemical energy systems. Lignin, the second most abundant natural polymer, has been successfully demonstrated to be a viable precursor or feedstock for the preparation of high‐performance electrochemical energy materials and components such as electrodes, electrolyte additives, membrane separators, and binders. Moreover, techno‐economic analyses indicate that it is possible to prepare cost‐effective carbon structures from lignin at engineering scale, in contrast with current carbon products. These facts suggest that the scalable conversion of lignin into high‐value energy materials will offer a promising pathway to not only promote the utilization and valorization of lignin but also boost the development of advanced electrochemical energy systems. This review examines cutting‐edge renewable energy materials derived from various lignin compounds and their applications in electrochemical energy systems with an emphasis on supercapacitors, rechargeable batteries, and fuel cells. Meanwhile, this review also aims to carve out the critical barriers for lignin‐derived high‐performance materials for energy applications, and to identify viable approaches for the synthesis of sustainable new energy materials. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Electrochemical energy conversion

Carbon fibers

10.1002/bbb.2083

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Citations (93)

Cellulolytic enzyme-aided extraction of hemicellulose from switchgrass and its characteristics

Green Chemistry (2019)

Jinhua Ding Chang Geun Yoo Yunqiao Pu Xianzhi Meng Samarthya Bhagia

To further increase the potential applications of hemicellulose, an eco-friendly promising protocol was introduced to isolate hemicellulose from switchgrass.

Hemicellulose

10.1039/c9gc00252a

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Citations (46)