Bioprocessing and Bioconversion: Free radical mechanisms involved in lignocellulose oxidation and fungal biodegradation mechanisms. Professor Goodell is a leading expert in brown rot wood decay mechanisms

Biochemical mechanisms involved in the biodegradation of wood and plant cell walls have great value and provide the basis for research in a number of subfields:

1) Conversion of biofiber to liquid fuels and chemical feedstocks. Some microorganisms such as wood decay fungi are ideally suited to depolymerize plant/wood cells to produce the basic building blocks found in cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. The basic monomeric sugar in cellulose, glucose can be fermented to produce ethanol; whereas other sugars, such as xylose from hemicellulose can be used to produce other chemicals and feed stocks. Lignin monomers have a variety of applications, and "brown rotted" lignin can be used as an adhesive with very little additional modification.

2) Remediation of pollutants in waste streams, and contaminants in soils and water. Our research has lead to the pilot scale application of our patented chelation technology for pollutant (acrolein) remediation in waste streams, and the remediation of recalcitrant dyes.

3) Protecting biomaterials from microbial degradation and prolonging the durability of bioproducts. Work in this area ranges from the development of new antioxidant systems for the protection of wood against the free radical attack mediated by fungi and other microorganisms, to the conservation of valuable artifacts.

4) Carbon cycling and sequestration in the environment. All carbon that is fixed as plant material is eventually broken down and released as CO² to complete the carbon cycle. Brown rot fungi produce the derived lignin fraction that accounts for approximately 1/3 of the carbon residue (humic derivatives) in coniferous forest floor soil horizons. Understanding the basic mechanisms involved in the production of these humic substances and the rate at which this material is converted to either CO² or to dissolved organic matter is important in global ecosystem modeling.