Patent ID: 8641910

Claim:
A process for converting biomass to a liquid biomass extract comprising fermentable sugars; the process comprising: providing biomass, wherein providing the biomass comprises harvesting a plant material, wherein the harvesting is timed to provide a freshly harvested, green, whole plant material comprising a moisture content of between about 70% and about 95%, wherein the between about 70% and the about 95% moisture come from the biomass; placing the biomass into an atmospherically controlled chamber for a period of time and under suitable conditions to effect saccharification of the biomass, alcohol fermentation of the biomass, or a combination thereof, thereby providing a liquefied biomass, wherein the liquefied biomass comprises residual solids, biomass-derived water, and water-soluble products, the water soluble products comprising fermentable sugars or fermentable sugars and an alcohol; and serially extracting the liquefied biomass, wherein serially extracting the liquefied biomass comprises: removing a first portion of the liquefied biomass from the chamber; collecting at least a portion of the biomass-derived water and water soluble products from the first portion of the liquefied biomass; and repeating the removing and collecting for one or more additional portions of the liquefied biomass; thereby providing a liquid biomass extract and a residual solids fraction wherein the plant material is derived from a plant selected from one or more of the group consisting of maize, soybean, millet, milo, rye, wheat, triticale, oats, barley, rice, sudangrass, switchgrass, Miscanthus , alfalfa, cotton, sisal, hemp, jute, turf grass, rape, sunflower, willow, eucalyptus, poplar, pine, willow, tobacco, clover, bamboo, flax, pea, radish, turnip, potato, sweet potato, cassava, taro, beet, sugar beet, and canola.