On July 17, 2013, the 11th Biomass Evening Seminar was held at Graduate School of Engineering, Hiroshima University.

Biomass Project Research Center, Hiroshima University, and HOSTY Association are co-organizing the Hiroshima University Biomass Evening Seminar. This seminar covers topics from the fundamentals of biomass to the latest information so that it can contribute the activities on biomass in this district.

• Commentary

Yukihiko MATSUMURA

Professor, Institute of Engineering

• Lecture

"Methane fermentation of marine macroalgae"

Toyokazu MIURA

Researcher, Graduate school of Advanced Sciences of Matter, Hiroshima University

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 Methane fermentation is a useful technology for microbial conversion of biomass to fuel gas.

 Among biomass, marine macroalgae is an attractive feedstock of methane fermentation because of its abundance. Marine macroalgae, however, has a disadvantage that high salts in the biomass inhibit microbial methane production. To overcome the problem, we began to search for salt-tolerant microorganisms from various sludges for efficient methane fermentation. In anaerobic cultivation of sludges with Kombu (Saccharina japonica), we found that mesophilic granules used in wastewater treatment produced less amount of methane in the presence of 3% of sodium chloride than that in the absence of salt. To search for methane-producing microorganisms to be salt-tolerant, marine sludges were anaerobically cultivated. All the marine sludges tested could produce methane in the presence of salt.

 During cultivation, volatile fatty acids (VFAs) were produced as intermediate metabolites,and methane was produced with decreasing amount of VFAs.(Japanese)

“Pulverization of eucalyptus in a ball mill under hydrothermal condition”

Takeshi DOZEN

M2 Student, Graduate School of Engineering, Hiroshima University

  Woody biomass has great potential as a biomass energy sources, but it has not been used effectively. Woody biomass, especially eucalyptus is considered as promising energy source because eucalyptus has high growing speed and is able to be planted at various regions. Therefore getting knowledge about using eucalyptus is considerably important for progress in the field of biomass energy. Thus, in this study, hydrothermal pretreatment and ball milling was conducted simultaneously to elucidate and get knowledge about behavior of treated eucalyptus.(Japanese)

• Chair

Machi KANNA

Assistant Professor, Institute of Engineering