ABSTRACT
The previous chapter deals with biomass properties that are important in thermal conversion. Preparing biomass for biological conversion also requires specic characterization procedures. These procedures lead to suitable biomass conversion pathways. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) of the US Department of Energy (USDOE) has developed several laboratory analytical procedures (LAPs) for categorizing biomass, specically for biological conversion and particularly for ethanol production. These LAPs are available online and are free. The procedures include the preparation of samples for compositional analysis and all the other associated experimental protocols for enzymatic saccharication of lignocellulosic biomass and basic sugar fermentation. More importantly, LAPs will keep track of the important compositional analysis parameters such as carbohydrates (or sugars), cellulose, and lignin contents in biomass. Unlike the parameters for thermal conversion, most of the procedures for compositional analysis are very time consuming and require more sophisticated facilities and equipment. These procedures
will be outlined in this chapter, including step-by-step characterization and the use of examples in each step.
