Biofuels, Bioenergy & Bioeconomy

In recent years, important steps into the transition towards biofuels have been taken in order to reduce environmental impacts linked to fossil fuels and to increase energetic independence. Worldwide bioenergy boom – from sciences, technologies, resources, policies – is an important part of the success and sustainability of the bioeconomy. An updated overview of advanced biofuel's production (alcohol, lipids and hydrogen mainly) from real lignocellulosic resources using yeasts or bacteria is proposed. Only few studies have focused on the advanced biofuel production from real lignocellulosic substrates when complex and synergistic effects of inhibitory compounds occur. Lignocellulose pretreatments to produce liquid or gaseous carbon sources for microbial biofuel production are reported and their scientific and technological bottlenecks i.e. initial low carbon content, generation of inhibitors, limitations to gas-liquid transfers, low yields of products from the initial carbon are underlined. The most recent advances on new engineered strains and innovative integrated bioprocesses for alcohol, lipids as biofuel precursor and hydrogen production are discussed. Prospects focus on the development of genetically modified strains, heat valorizations, recycle of by-products and innovative bioprocesses can contribute to the economic and environmental viability of the lignocellulosic pathway for the production of biofuels. On overview of French academic partners involved in biofuel's production in accordance with French National Research Agency strategy is reported and the evolution during the ten passed years is discussed.