Amsonia spp. as potential fuel crops for arid lands

Abstract

The biomass of three desert plants, Amsonia kearneyana, A. grandiflora and A. palmeri, was used for the production of glucose and ethanol by simultaneous saccharification and fermentation techniques. Ethanol yields were 0.46 g g(-1) for A. keurneyana, 0.51 g g(-1) for A. grandiflora and 0.51 g g(-1) for A. palmeri. When the plant materials were saccharified into glucose only, the yields obtained were 0.35 g g(-1) for A. kearneyana, 0.39 g g(-1) for A. grandiflora and 0.22 g g(-1) for A. palmeri.