Sweetener and flavor compositions with improved taste profiles are disclosed. Also disclosed are methods of making and methods of using such sweetener and flavor compositions.

The present invention relates to utilization of bio-based materials. In particular, the present invention relates to a method for utilization of grain based raw materials, wherein the method also comprises a versatile use of the side streams or by-products of the process. The method produces a wet fiber cake for combustion, wherein said wet fiber cake provides excellent burn values, low emission values and low amount of residual ash.

It is disclosed a process for producing a bio-product from a ligno-cellulosic biomass, wherein the ligno-cellulosic biomass, a gas and steam are introduced in a pressurized reactor operated in a continuous manner at conditions to have a vapor head space. In the pressurized reactor, the vapor head space is maintained at a vapor head space temperature and at a pressure which is at least 1 bar greater than a pure steam equilibrium pressure at the vapor head space temperature. The ligno-cellulosic biomass is then refined by rapidly releasing the pressure while discharging the ligno-cellulosic biomass from the pressurized reactor assembly to create a pre-treated ligno-cellulosic biomass, which is then hydrolyzed and converted to the bio-product. Preferably, at least a portion of the gas is air entrapped in the ligno-cellulosic biomass and it is introduced into the pressurized reactor as part of the ligno-cellulosic biomass. In a preferred embodiment, the lignocellulosic biomass is subjected to a soaking step and an aeration step prior to being introduced into the pressurized reactor, without any xylans separation step.

The present invention provides the use of neuregulin protein for the preparation of medication for preventing, treating or delaying heart failure in humans and methods for preventing, treating or delaying heart failure in humans using said medication.

The invention relates, in general, to methods of processing Lignocellulosic biomass to fermentable sugars and to methods that rely on hydrothermal pretreatment. Xylose monomer yields comparable to those achieved using two-stage pretreatments can be achieved from soft Lignocellulosic biomass feedstocks by pretreasting to very low severity in a single-stage pressurized hydrothermal pretreatment, followed by enzymatic hydrolysis to release xylose retained in the solid state. In some embodiments, pretreated biomass is separated into a solid fraction and a liquid fraction, the solid fraction subjected to enzymatic hydrolysis, and the separated liquid fraction subsequently mixed with the hydrolysed solid fraction.

Related to is a system for preparing xylose liquid by continuously hydrolyzing hemicellulose, including a neutralizing unit, an acid-adjusting unit, a feeding unit, a liquefaction ejecting unit, a feed and discharge heat-exchanging unit and a discharge controlling unit. The neutralizing unit includes a raw material tank, a neutralizing concentrated sulfuric acid pump and a neutralizing pipeline mixer, the acid-adjusting unit includes an acid-adjusting concentrated sulfuric acid pump, an acid-adjusting pipeline mixer and an acid-adjusting tank, the feeding unit includes a feed tank, the liquefaction ejecting unit includes a liquefaction ejector and a liquefaction maintainer, the feed and discharge heat-exchanging unit includes a plate-type teed and discharge heat exchanger and a first discharge temperature sensor, and the discharge controlling unit includes a discharge valve and a reflux valve. The obtained xylose liquid exchanges heat with the hemicellulose liquid in the plate-type feed and discharge heat exchanger to decrease a temperature of the xylose liquid, whereas a temperature of the hemicellulose liquid is increased. Further disclosed is a method using the system. The simultaneous feed and discharge heat exchanges greatly reduce energy consumption, and feed and exchange are continuously run, thereby improving the production efficiency and simplifying manual operations.

The invention relates to a process for the preparation of a fermentation product from lignocellulosic material, comprising the following steps: a) optionally, pretreatment of the lignocellulosic material, b) optionally, washing of the optionally pretreated lignocellulosic material, c) enzymatic hydrolysis of the optionally washed and/or optionally pretreated lignocellulosic material using an enzyme composition comprising at least two cellulases and whereby the enzyme composition at least comprises LPMO, and optionally purifying the hydrolysed lignocellulosic material, d) fermentation of the hydrolysed lignocellulosic material to produce a fermentation product, and e) optionally, recovery of a fermentation product, wherein the amounts of formed hydrolysed oxidation products at the end of the enzymatic hydrolysis by the oxidation by LPMO of the lignocellulosic material containing cellulose and/or cello-oligosaccharides is kept between 3 to 80 g/kg glucan present in the lignocellulosic material by adding a suitable amount of oxygen after the pre-treatment and before and/or during the enzymatic hydrolysis to the lignocellulosic material, preferably the formed hydrolysed oxidation product is gluconic acid, an aldonic acid and/or geminal diol, more preferably the hydrolysed oxidation product is gluconic acid.

A process for hydrolyzing at least part of the hemicellulose and at least part of the cellulose of a particulate solid material comprising cellulose, lignin, and from 10 to 60% by weight of hemicellulose, wherein said hemicellulose comprises xylose in an amount of from 40 to 100% by weight, on the basis of hemicellulose, said process being conducted in at least one reactor comprising said particulate solid material and interstitial space. The process comprises two hydrolysis steps using hydrochloric acid, separated by a displacement step wherein a water-immiscible displacement fluid displaces part of the hydrochloric acid containing hydrolysate products from the interstitial space in the reactor. In the present process, a particulate solid material is used of which the hemicellulose is high in xylose (xylan).

Systems and methods for producing carbohydrate (e.g., sugar) streams (and recycling enzymes) from a pretreated or untreated biomass such as cellulosic feedstock, including, for example, “brown stock” feedstock, or waste or recycled fiber sludge produced in the pulp and paper industry, such as for biochemical (e.g., biofuel) production, are provided. In one example, the system and method can produce high purity C6 (glucose and/or fructose) and/or C5 (xylose) sugar streams, and other carbohydrates and/or fibrous materials, from cellulosic feedstocks, such as brown stock or waste fiber sludge, that can be effectively converted into various biochemical products, such as ethanol.

Sweetener and flavor compositions with improved taste profiles are disclosed. Also disclosed are methods of making and methods of using such sweetener and flavor compositions.