Just this week, we announced the launch of Spirizyme Excel, a new saccharification solution that makes it possible to produce more ethanol from the same amount of corn. This premium glucoamylase converts more of the starch in corn, wheat, and other feedstocks into sugars which can be fermented to ethanol, allowing producers to increase yields by more than one percent. Compared to other solutions, a typical ethanol plant can gain $1 million or more per year using the enzyme.
”Novozymes is at the forefront of developing technologies that allow biofuel producers to make more from less,” says Poul Ruben Andersen, Biofuel Marketing Director of Novozymes. “We have achieved great breakthroughs in cellulosic biofuel recently, but this does not mean we have forgotten about corn ethanol. We have delivered market-leading innovation to this industry for a long time and we will continue to do so both for corn and cellulosic ethanol”.
Starch can’t hide
Spirizyme Excel is the most robust glucoamylase available. Its specialized multi-component activities allow it to break down the most difficult starch fractions, providing consistent fermentation and higher ethanol yields across a wide range of mash conditions and plant processes. The greater the starch conversion, the higher the ethanol output. And more ethanol means more profit.
“The biofuel industry has experienced tremendous technology improvements over the past years,” says Andersen. “Increased efficiency in crop production, ethanol conversion, and co-product use means that today, ethanol made from corn can reduce CO2 emissions by up to 70 percent compared to gasoline. “
Today, an average acre of corn will yield roughly 440 gallons of ethanol. Corn yields have improved by 70 percent per acre and ethanol plants can get 50 percent more ethanol out of the corn compared to 1977.
In 2009, the US produced 10.8 billion gallons of ethanol, supporting nearly 400,000 jobs, contributing $53.3 billion to the GDP, and displacing the need for 364 million barrels of oil. US legislation mandates production of 12 billion gallons of ethanol in 2010.