Progress 01/01/24 to 12/31/24
Outputs
Target Audience:The intended audience for this project duration included members of the science and engineering community, collaborators within the pulp/fiber manufacturers, and poultry industries in the United States. The project holds particular significance for individuals engaged in the conversion of the biomass components into value-added materials and chemicals. Our primary focus revolved around advancing Research & Development endeavors. Additionally we aim to demonstrate the potential of hemicellulose-derived XOS (xylooligosaccharides) as non antibiotic sources of functional feed additives and to develop a feasible methodology for XOS isolation and production such that it will ultimately facilitate the integrated utilization of lignocellulosic feedstock in biorefineries. Changes/Problems:No major changes however there aresome delays in the project due to the need to acquire a new extraction system to produce the crude fractions for the study. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The project's post doc had the opportunity to attend a three-days training program to operate a new bio-digester needed for the project, which features a capacity of 20 liters and is equipped with two vessels to generate large amount of XOS crude extracts. The training was focused on understanding the system's functionality, handling procedures, and optimizing its performance for bio-digestion process. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The research findings that address the production of hemicellulose and potential applications were disseminated at the Circular Bioeconomy System: A Workshop held at University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, where it attracted the interest of biorefineries, process engineers, and researchers who are involved in the biomass-based chemicals, fuels, and materials development. Kamboj, G., Labbé, N., Lin, J., D'Souza, D., Wang, S., Nair, S., Rajan, K. Production and valorization of hemicellulose biorefining streams as a functional feed ingredients for poultry industry, CBS (Circular Bioeconomy System) Knoxville, TN., 9th May, 2024. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?During the upcoming project period, the team will produce three fractions of XOS: I) a crude XOS without any purification, II) a high molecular weight XOS mixture (≥DP 10) free of significant by-products, and III) a highly pure low molecular weight XOS mixture (≤DP 9). Additionally, Co-PDs Lin and D'Souza's team will test the performance of these three XOS fractions produced in vivo chicken models. The birds in the control group will receive only water (along with normal feed) while those in the three treatment groups will additionally receive an XOS as a oral supplement. The team will ascertain the ideal XOS fraction (with known chemical composition and molecular weight) that is suitable for chicken body weight gain and resistance toC. jejunicolonization, and as prebiotics for probiotic growth. We also expect to determine the mechanism by which XOS components promote beneficial gut microbiota in the broiler chicken.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
This project aims to develop an economically and environmentally viable approach for large scale production of xylooligosaccharides (XOS) with proven efficacy for promoting poultry health and growth, and thus stimulate the utilization of hemicellulose sugars in the functional feed additive industry. Agricultural residues are valuable sources of hemicellulose-derived xylooligosaccharides (XOS), which are emerging as a prebiotic feed additives. During the project period 2024, PD-Labbé lab conducted major investigation on the effect of temperature and time on the hydrolysate composition of five different biomass sources (switchgrass, wheat straw, miscanthus, pine, and hybrid poplar). High performance liquid chromatography analysis was conducted to identify and quantify the monosaccharides (xylose, glucose, mannose, glactose), oligosaccharides (xylobiose, xylotriose, xylotetraose, arabinobiose), and byproducts (lactic acid, formic acid, acetic acid, furfural) from all authydrolysis hydrolysates. The frozen hydrolyzates were shared with partners at Georgia Tech University for graphene oxide (GO) membrane nanofiltration (NF) process to separate the water from the hemicellulose rich flow. Co-PD Nair's team are working on the GO NF membrane for the rejection of lignin along with molecular weight cutoff (MWCO) ~360 Da. In the base case scenario, the crude NF concentration will be the end product, while in upgraded scenario, additional steps are included to obtain XOS products with targeted molecular weights. The concentrated hemicellulose hydrolysates will pass through ultrfiltration membrane to fractionate high-MW XOS products known as ultrafiltration retentate and low- MW XOS (ultrafiltration crude permeate containing by products). The latter stream will then be sent to selective carbon-based adsorption process to remove/modulate co-products like organic acids and phenolic components. Our goal is to identify hydrothermal fractionation conditions that produce high hemicellulose extraction efficiency and high XOS yield from feedstock. We will utilize these crude and/or purified XOS fragments as poultry feed additives by determining their growth and health-promoting effects in poultry and as value-added prebiotics for growth of select probiotics. Co-PD Nair group has begun evaluation of initial suitable adsorbents for separation of purified XOS streams from the crude XOS extract, based on the chemical compositions of the crude extract provided by the Labbé group. Furthermore, initial membrane nanofiltration of the crude extract is being performed as an initial separation unit operation, and the compositions of the permeate and retentate steams are being analyzed in detail.
Publications
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Progress 01/01/23 to 12/31/23
Outputs
Target Audience:The intended audience for this project duration included members of the science and engineering community, collaborators within the pulp, paper, farmers, and poultry feed industry in the United States. The project holds particular significance for individual engaged in the conversion of the biomass components into valuable materials. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?One postdoctoral researcher was hired to process and trained in the pre-processing and characterization of the lignocellulosic feedstocks. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?We are actively working on disseminating our results to the communities of interest. We are in the planning phase of hosting a workshop and conference to ensure that our findings will reach a wise audience. These events will provide valuable opportunities for discussion, sharing knowledge, and collaboration. We are also committed to continue to develop meaningful connection with our industrial partners. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?During the upcoming project period, the team will optimize the autohydrolysis process to maximize the XOS production. Additionally, we will characterize the composition and purity of XOS which will be determined based on the total amount of monosaccharides and polysaccharides available per gram of the hydrolyzate. We will also demonstrate the use of the graphene oxide nanofiltration (GO NF) membrane with tuned molecular weight cutoff (MWCO) in the range of 300-400 Da, to retain XOS and produce a retentate product with a total solid content of 30% (w/v) while permeating water, inorganic contaminants, and some by-products. We will evulate and validate XOS for growth performance and the pathogen resistance in broiler chickens.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The approval ofIACUC was submitted to USDA in May 2023 and we received a USDA amendement that releases the fundingin December 2023. Therefore we did not spend any funds in 2023, however, we initiatedsome preliminary work. We conducted a study involving the extraction of extractives present in wheat straw, our model biomass. This step is needed to remove non-structural components, such as free sugars, phenolics, and ash, prior to the extraction of hemicellulose. Sized-reduced biomass was added to an in-house constructed 10L bioreactor and extracted with 2.5 L of water at 100 °C for one hour. The same process was repeated with ethanol, and this was done 18 times to comprehensively assess the variability of the extracted material and generate a large batch of extractives-free biomass. Following the extraction process, the biomass was air-dried and conditioned for the production of hemicellulosic materials for the remaining tasks and objectives of the project.
Publications
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