NOVELTY - Making a fuel from biomass material, comprises: providing a biomass material comprising a high molecular weight carbohydrate; hydrolyzing the biomass material to provide a hydrolyzed biomass material; combining the hydrolyzed biomass material with Clostridium phytofermentans cells in a medium; and fermenting the hydrolyzed biomass material under conditions and for a time sufficient to produce a fuel. The concentration of carbohydrates in the medium is greater than 20 mM.    USE - The method is useful for: making a fuel e.g. ethanol from biomass material (claimed), where the fuel includes hydrogen and organic acids including formic acid, lactic acid and acetic acid, or their conjugate bases e.g. formate, lactate or acetate; and producing co-products useful as feedstocks for the chemical or pharmaceutical industries.    ADVANTAGE - The method ferments a broad spectrum of materials into fuels with high efficiency. The Clostridium phytofermentans provides: fermentation of high concentrations of 5C sugars e.g. xylose or polymers e.g. xylan to combustible fuels; ferments higher cellulose concentrations e.g. greater than 40 mM with increasing ethanol yield; remains active even at high concentrations of carbohydrates; grows and ferments under a wide range of temperatures and pH; and can ferment the raw cellulosic material into a fuel directly.    DETAILED DESCRIPTION - INDEPENDENT CLAIMS are also included for: (1) a fuel plant comprising a hydrolysis unit configured to hydrolyze a biomass material containing a high molecular weight carbohydrate and a fermentor configured to house a medium and comprising Clostridium phytofermentans cells dispersed in it; (2) making a fuel, comprising combining Clostridium phytofermentans cells and a lignocellulosic material in a medium and fermenting the lignocellulosic material under conditions and for a time sufficient to produce a fuel; (3) making a fuel, comprising combining Clostridium phytofermentans cells and a material comprising a carbohydrate in a medium, where a concentration of the carbohydrate in the medium is greater than 40 mM and fermenting the material comprising the carbohydrate under conditions and for a time sufficient to produce a fuel; (4) a method comprising combining Clostridium phytofermentans cells, a second microbe and a material comprising a carbohydrate in a medium, and fermenting the material comprising the carbohydrate; and (5) a composition comprising Clostridium phytofermentans and a second microbe.