Characterization of Fall Leaves as a Source of Cellulosic Ethanol

Concerns about the high prices of gasoline and production of the greenhouse gas CO2 by the combustion of fossils fuels have increased the use of ethanol as a bio-fuel. Concerns have also been raised about diverting traditional crops to ethanol production. Cellulose in biomass has been proposed as an alternative feedstock for ethanol production. In this project, Autumn leaves were evaluated as biomass for the production of cellulosic ethanol. A standard Laboratory Analytical Procedure published by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory was used to characterize leaves. Acid soluble lignin, acid insoluble lignin and ash were measured. High Performance Liquid Chromatography was used to assay the carbohydrate composition of the leaves. Initial results indicated that leaves had at least 20% acid hydrolysable cellulose