Innovation in Bioethanol Research

液体运输燃料约占加拿大总能源消耗的35%。作为减少对化石燃料依赖战略的一部分，联邦政府已下令在2010年之前用乙醇替代至少5%的汽油。赫斯基能源公司是加拿大淀粉基乙醇生产的领导者之一。当前的经济危机，伴随着高商品价格和低燃料价格，对加拿大的生物乙醇工业构成了重大挑战。曼尼托巴大学生物乙醇创新项目解决了生物乙醇生产的整个价值链，以提高各个层面的盈利能力和效率。虽然玉米是乙醇生产中最理想的淀粉基谷物，但寒冷的条件和较短的生长季节限制了加拿大西部的玉米生产。冬小麦是产量最高的替代淀粉基谷物，可以有效地用于乙醇生产。因此，该项目的目标是开发冬小麦品种，为生物乙醇工业提供可靠的优质无病原料来源，开展基础研究，提高对谷物中淀粉生物合成与产量之间关系的理解，并通过生物工程提高原料向乙醇的转化。研究的一部分致力于确定随着新技术的发展，将目前的基础设施从淀粉基乙醇生产转变为纤维素基能源生产的可行性和步骤。这项研究将通过提供可靠的原料来源来提高生物乙醇工业的盈利能力，生产商愿意发展和销售乙醇工业。生物乙醇加工的改进将提供更高的原料转化为乙醇，并减少生产的低价值副产品的数量。通过评估淀粉生产和产量的生理学研究获得的基础知识将为提高粮食产量提供长期战略，用于未来的粮食、饲料和燃料用途。这些改进对于确保燃料生产的利益不会危及全球粮食的获取至关重要。

Liquid transportation fuels represent approximately 35% of the total energy consumption in Canada. The federal government has mandated a replacement of at least 5% of gasoline with ethanol by the year 2010 as part of a strategy to reduce reliance on fossil fuels. Husky Energy is one of the leaders in starch-based ethanol production in Canada. The current economic crisis, accompanied by high commodity prices and low fuel prices, has significantly challenged the bioethanol industry in Canada. The University of Manitoba Innovation in Bioethanol program addresses the full value-chain of bioethanol production to improve profitability and efficiency at all levels. Although corn is the most desirable starch-based cereal for ethanol production, cool conditions and a short growing season limit corn production in Western Canada. Winter wheat is the highest yielding alternative starch-based cereal that can be used effectively for ethanol production. Therefore, the objectives of this project are to develop winter wheat cultivars that provide a reliable source of high-quality disease-free feedstocks for the bioethanol industry, conduct fundamental research that will improve the understanding of the relationship between starch biosynthesis and yield in cereals, and improve the conversion of feedstocks to ethanol through bioengineering. A portion of the research is dedicated to determining the feasibility and steps required to transition the current infrastructure from starch-based ethanol production to cellulose-based energy production as new technologies are developed. This research will improve the profitability of the bioethanol industry by providing a reliable source of feedstock that producers are willing to grow and market the ethanol industry. Improvements in the bioethanol processing will provide higher feedstock conversion rates to ethanol and reduce the quantity of lower value co-product produced. Fundamental knowledge learned through physiological studies that evaluate starch production and yield will provide long-term strategies for improvement of grain yields for future food, feed and fuel purposes. Such improvements are critical to ensuring that interests in fuel production do not endanger access to food globally.