Company creates more efficient ethanol

We normally associate yeast with bread. At Green Tech America, Inc., researchers use it to make the fuel of the future, ethanol. Senior Scientist Abhijit Mukhopadhyay said Founder and President Nancy Ho genetically inserts three enzymes into the yeast for a dual product.

"It can produce ethanol from cellulosic biomass. At the same time it will produce more industrial enzymes as co-product," said Mukhopadhyay.

Mukhopadhyay said because the enzyme yeast is different it can create ethanol from cellulosic biomass like wood chips, grasses and agricultural wastes like corn stalks and wheat straw. He said the ag products are hydrolyzed with a mild acid before it is processed. The result is twice the amount of ethanol produced with corn and normal yeast now.

"It can actually produce as much as 80 to 100 gallons of ethanol from one ton of grass. But at the same time the normal yeast can produce only 40 to 50 gallons of ethanol from one ton feed stock," said Mukhopadhyay.

Nancy Ho said she has been developing the yeast at Purdue since 1980. She's even received praise on her work from Former President George W. Bush. She said the goal is not to waste anything.

"Cellulosic Biomass, it's there. Every year, if we don't use it, we'll waste it. So, all of this waste coming to use also motivated me. I feel the world keeps getting more and more people we have to make use of every bit of thing we have," Ho said.

Ho said Green Tech will sell ethanol, the yeast and the by-product of the process, industrial enzymes, to other companies.

Green Tech America was founded in 2006.  The lab was built last year.  The company employs seven full and part-time workers.