Gevo, Inc.

Midwest Research Institute

California Institute of Technology

Kent Evans

Patrick R Gruber

Aharon Eyal

Aristos Aristidou

Andrew Hawkins

William Andrew Evanko

David A Glassner

Fudu Miao

Peter Meinhold

Min Zhang

Yat-Chen Chou

Jun Urano

Catherine Asleson Dundon

Uvini Gunawardena

Doug Lies

Thomas Buelter

Reid M Renny Feldman

Ali Mohagheghi

Justas Jancauskas

Ruth Berry

Sabine Bastian

William Howe

Christine Eddy

This invention is directed to methods for recovery of C3-C6 alcohols from dilute aqueous solutions, such as fermentation broths. Such methods provide improved volumetric productivity for the fermentation and allows recovery of the alcohol. Such methods also allow for reduced energy use in the production and drying of spent fermentation broth due to increased effective concentration of the alcohol product by the simultaneous fermentation and recovery process which increases the quantity of alcohol produced and recovered per quantity of fermentation broth dried. Thus, the invention allows for production and recovery of C3-C6 alcohols at low capital and reduced operating costs.

Recovery of higher alcohols from dilute aqueous solutions

Disclosed in the present invention is aintegrant and derivatives of these integrants that posses the ability to ferment pentose into ethanol. The genetic sequences encoding for the pentose-fermenting enzymes are integrated into thein a two-integration event of homologous recombination and transposition. Each operon includes more than one pentose-reducing enzyme encoding sequence. The integrant in some embodiments includes enzyme sequences encoding xylose isomerase, xylulokinase, transketolase and transketolase. Theintegrants are highly stable, and retain activity for producing the pentose-fermenting enzyme for between 80 to 160 generations. The integrants are also resistant to acetate inhibition, as the integrants demonstrate efficient ethanol production even in the presence of 8 up to 16 grams acetate per liter media. These stably integrated sequences provide a uniquethat may then be used for the efficient conversion of pentose sugars (xylose, arabinose) to ethanol. Method of using theintegrants and derivatives thereof in production of ethanol from cellulosic feedstock is also disclosed. The invention also provides a method for preparing aintegrant as part of the present invention. The hoststrain found particularly useful in the creation of these compositions and methods is31821.

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Littleton, CO, United States of America

Kent Evans