Lignocellulosic biomass represents a vast and renewable source of fermentable sugar for
production of biofuels. However, native lignocellulose—comprised of cellulose,
hemicellulose and lignin—is refractory to degradation because the crystalline cellulose is
not easily hydrolyzed by cellulases. Standard chemical treatments of lignocellulose to
reduce the crystallinity of cellulose prior to enzymatic...