Second Statement

The III Latin American Congress on Biorefineries is the leading meeting in Latin American on new uses of forest, agricultural and microalgal biomass as a source of bioenergy, chemicals and biomaterials.

The event is aimed at representatives from the productive, academic and public sector; in particular, professionals, executives and scientists, both from Chile and abroad. 

The Congress will be held at the Gran Hotel of the lake resort Pucon, Chile, between November 19th and 21st, 2012. The organization is in charge of the Technological Development Unit (UDT) and the Biotechnology Center of the Universidad de Concepcion, and the Scientific and Technological Center in Bio-resources (BIOREN) of the Universidad de La Frontera. 

The program considers the presentation of lectures and posters, through which the progress, challenges and opportunities of biorefineries in Latin America and the world will be known. 

1. Subject Areas 

[a] Chemical Processes 

Biomass conversion processes are included to obtain intermediate products of commercial interest, as well as scientific, technological, and economic aspects, methodology optimization, product characterization and applications. 
The main topics that are considered for this subject area are: 

  • Hydrolysis of wood, other lignocellulosic raw materials and microalgal biomass. 
  • Separation processes of biomass components with organic solvents, gases under sub-and supercritical conditions, ionic liquids, among others. 
  • Transesterification. 
  • Chemical modification of cellulose, hemicelluloses and lignin. 
  • Refinement of by-products from lignocellulosic and microalgal biomass to obtain biofuels and bioproducts. 
  • Scaling of chemical processes. 

[b] Thermochemical Processes 

The biomass thermochemical conversion subject area considers processes at the laboratory, pilot and industrial level, product characterization and applications, and especially the obtaining of solid, liquid and gaseous biofuels. The following areas are considered: 

  • Process of wood, bark and waste organic materials roasting, pellets and roasted pellets. 
  • Fast and slow pyrolysis to produce bio-oil and biochar. 
  • Hydrothermal processes of biomass conversion or its components. 
  • Fischer-Tropsch by-products and bio-oil. 
  • Biogenic methane obtained through methanation of synthesis gas and hydrogen. 

[c] Biological Processes 

Biological processes consider the conversion of carbohydrates present in agricultural, forest and microalgal biomass into intermediate products of scientific or commercial interest, including, among others: 

  • Alcoholic fermentation and bioethanol production. 
  • Anaerobic digestion and biogas production. 
  • Hydrolysis of biomass. 
  • Use of bacteria and enzymes to obtain specific products of interest. 

[d] Sustainability 

This area is focused on the life cycle analysis in biorefining processes, 

the analysis of economic, energy, environmental and social sustainability of the use of biomass as a substitute for oil, as well as logistics and availability of biomass. In particular, the following topics are considered: 

  • Life cycle analysis of biomass biorefining processes. 
  • Economic, environmental and/or social assessment on biorefining processes. 
  • Energy balance of biorefining processes. 
  • Biomass logistics applied to biorefineries. 
  • Availability of biomass as raw material for biorefineries. 

[e] Biomaterials 

Products and processes related to new types of biomaterials, their characterization and development of commercial applications are considered; in particular, it is important to note: 

  • Thermoplastic biomaterials. 
  • Biodegradable materials. 
  • Thermosetting resins based on renewable resources. 
  • Composite biomaterials. 
  • Conventional and functional packaging based on renewable resources. 

[f] Raw Materials 

Includes raw materials for biorefineries, both from forest, agricultural and microalgal origin. All relevant aspects for their processing, such as availability, cost, physical and chemical characteristics, and supply feasibility are considered. In particular, it is important to note: 

  • Availability and characterization of raw materials. 
  • Supply logistics (harvest, storage, transport). 
  • Preparation, through drying, size reduction, densification and others. 
  • Cost. 

[g] Biofuels 

This subject area includes all types of biofuels (solid, liquid or gaseous) feasible to produce agricultural, forest or microalgal biomass. In particular, it is important to note: 

  • Gaseous biofuels: Biogas, biogenic methane, bio-hydrogen, synthesis gas 
  • Liquids biofuel: Bioethanol, butanol fuel, biodiesel, Fischer-Tropsch synthesis BTL, bio-oil, jet fuel, biohydrocarbons. 
  • Solid biofuels: Pellets and roasted pellets, other solid biofuels. 


2. Important Dates 

  • The official announcement to present papers starts on March 1st and ends on July 30th, 2012. 
  • Notification of papers accepted for oral or written presentations (poster): August 30th, 2012. 
  • On-line register from September 30th, 2012. 


3. Scientific Committee 

  • Dr. Dietrich Meier, University of Hamburg, Germany. 
  • Dr. Marco Aurélio Pinheiro Lima, CTBE, Brazil 
  • Dr. Amar Mohanty, University of Guelph, Canada. 
  • Dr. Jules van Lier, Delft University of Technology, Holland 
  • Dr. Claudio Zaror, Universidad de Concepción, Chile. 
  • Dr. Alejandro Müller, Universidad Simón Bolívar, Venezuela. 
  • Carmen Michels, FKuR Company Director of the Fraunhofer Institute UMSICHT, Germany 
  • Dr. William Desisto, University of Maine, USA. 
  • Dr. Germán Buitrón, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. 
  • Dr. Jack Saddler, University of British Columbia, Canada 
  • Dr. Marcelo Zaiat, Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil. 
  • Dr. André Ferraz, Department of Biotechnology EEL USP, Brazil. 
  • Dr. Alex Berg, Universidad de Concepción, Chile 
  • Dr. Rodrigo Navia, Universidad de La Frontera, Chile 


4. Organizing Committee 

  • Dr. Alex Berg, Technological Development Unit (Chairman). 
  • Dr. Cristina Segura, Technological Development Unit. 
  • Dr. Sofía Valenzuela, Biotechnology Center UdeC. 
  • Dr. Jaime Rodríguez, Biotechnology Center UdeC. 
  • Dr. Rodrigo Navia, Universidad de La Frontera. 
  • Dr. David Jeison, Universidad de La Frontera. 


5. Location of the Congress 

Pucon is a beautiful city located in southern Chile, 100 km from Temuco, capital of the Araucanía Region and 670 km from Santiago. It has many options for outdoor entertaining, along with volcanoes, lakes, native forests, national parks and thermal facilities. Pucon is considered one of the most important tourist destinations in Chile and is the gateway to the Chilean Patagonia. 


6. Registration Cost 

General public: $200.000 (CLP). 

Students: $50.000 (CLP) (limited capacity). 


7. About Pucon 

More information about Pucon and its surroundings can be found at: 


You can download the pdf version of this statement here.