• Number 350  |
• November 14, 2011

Tension wood may bring ethanol bonanza

In a first-of-its-kind tension wood study, researchers at DOE’s BioEnergy Science Center at Oak Ridge National Laboratory are utilizing a comprehensive suite of techniques to systematically characterize tension wood, which forms naturally in hardwood trees in response to bending stress. A special type of cell wall in tension wood of poplar trees is composed of more than 90 percent cellulose, or the plant sugars that are fermented into alcohol for use as biofuel. Insight from studying tension wood could be used to design and select more suitable tailored bioenergy crops.
http://www.ornl.gov/info/press_releases/get_press_release.cfm?ReleaseNumber=mr20111025-00.

[Morgan McCorkle, 865.574.7308,
mccorkleml@ornl.gov]