Recent Advances in Thermochemical Conversion of Biomass

Professor Ashok Pandey is currently Executive Director, Centre for Energy and Environmental Sustainability-India, Lucknow. He is HSBS National Innovation Chair (Biotechnology) and is/has been Visiting/Distinguished Professor in many countries. His major research and technological development interests are industrial & environmental biotechnology and energy biosciences, focusing on biomass to biofuels & chemicals, waste to wealth & energy, etc.

Michael Stöcker received his Diploma in Chemistry in 1975 and his Dr. rer. nat. degree in 1979 - both from the University of Münster (Germany). He kept positions as Research Assistant at the Universities of Münster (Germany, 1975-1979) and Bergen (Norway, 1980-1982) before he joined the Center for Industrial Research (SI - now SINTEF) in 1982. In 1988-1989 he had a sabbatical leave at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver (Canada). He is the Emeritus Editor-in-Chief of the scientific journal “Microporous and Mesoporous Materials”, published by Elsevier B.V.

Furthermore, Michael Stöcker kept side positions as Adjunct Professor at the University of Bergen (Norway, 1999-2004) and the Norwegian University for Science and Technology in Trondheim (Norway, 2004-2007).

Michael Stöcker has 30 years experience within the fields of synthesis, characterization and catalytic testing of different type of materials, covering mainly zeolites, micro- and mesoporous materials and oxide materials related to catalysis, sorption technology, surface modification and design of novel processes. Special interests are within spectrocopy (Solid-state NMR, ESR, XPS), micro- and mesoporous materials, zeolites, catalytic cracking, desulphurization, MTO as well as bio-refinery related catalysis.

He is the author or co-author of about 155 scientific journal publications (including 10 review papers and 10 Handbook chapters), and is co-inventor of two patents. Michael Stöcker has co-edited two scientific books. He has presented about 130 lectures on a national and international basis, about 65 of them based on invitations. He has been project manager of a number of larger industrial contract research projects, Norwegian Research Council and EU projects.

He served on the Board (Council) of the International Zeolites Association (IZA – 1998-2004), as Chairman of the IZA Catalysis Commission (1998-2004 – member since 1994) and as a member of the IZA Synthesis Commission (1992-2004). He is a Member of the Editorial Board of the “Journal of Dispersion Science and Technology”.

He received the DGMK 2009 Award of the German Society for Petroleum and Coal Science and Technology.

Currently he is the activity leader for the Biofuels program of the Centre for Biofuels at NIIST, and had been the program coordinator for NIIST’s major laboratory program on biofuels. He played a leading role in setting up the Centre for Biofuel’s lignocellulosic ethanol pilot plant at NIIST. Currently his main research interests include-Developing enzymes for biomass conversion to sugars and ethanol, Glucose tolerant ß-glucosidases from fungi, and developing molecular methods for heterologous gene expression in fungi.

He has authored reports for national policy making bodies and for international agencies, on biofuels including the International Energy Agency. He is the academic editor of “British Biotechnology Journal” and is a member of the editorial board of “Conference Papers in Energy”. He has authored 56 publications in International Journals and 5 book chapters. He has also served as member of different task forces including Biotech Task Force for the State Council of Science, Technology and Environment, of Kerala state, India and is a member of the panel of reviewers ( for R & D projects) for the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Government of India.