Previous Fora / 2013
GÖRGENS, Johann
Professor of Chemical Engineering, Stellenbosch University
Johann Görgens is an Associate Professor in the Department of Process Engineering at the Stellenbosch University. He holds a PhD in Biochemical Engineering.
The
research of Professor Johann Görgens focuses on the production of fuels and
chemicals from fibrous plant material, such as straw, various grasses, bagasse,
wood shavings and even alien vegetation, through biological and thermochemical
processes.
The biological route, in which Prof Görgens works closely with microbiologist Emile van Zyl, entails the development of
yeasts for enzymatic hydrolysis of pre-treated feedstocks, which is performed
simultaneously with the fermentation of released sugars to products. The
thermochemical route, where Prof Görgens collaborates with Prof Hansie Knoetze
(Process Engineering), relies on two processes: pyrolysis and gasification.
Pyrolysis and gasification entail the decomposition of raw material at high
temperatures with a limited amount of oxygen in order to produce fuel.