The lignin present in steam pretreated softwood binds enzymes and limits cellulose accessibility

The influence of cellulose accessibility and protein loading on the efficiency of enzymatic hydrolysis of steam pretreated Douglas-fir was assessed. It was apparent that the lignin component significantly influences the swelling/accessibility of cellulose as at low protein loadings (5 FPU/g cellulose), only 16% of the cellulose present in the steam pretreated softwood was hydrolyzed while almost complete hydrolysis was achieved with the delignified substrate. When lignin (isolated from steam pretreated Douglas-fir) was added back in the same proportions it was originally found to the highly accessible and swollen, delignified steam pretreated softwood and to a cellulose control such as Avicel, the hydrolysis yields decreased by 9 and 46%, respectively. However, when higher enzyme loadings were employed, the greater availability of the enzyme could overcome the limitations imposed by both the lignin’s restrictions on cellulose accessibility and direct binding of the enzymes, resulting in a near complete hydrolysis of the cellulose.     

Two-stage pretreatment of rice straw using aqueous ammonia and dilute acid

Liberation of fermentable sugars from recalcitrant lignocellulosic biomass is one of the key challenges in production of cellulosic ethanol. Here we developed a two-stage pretreatment process using aqueous ammonia and dilute sulfuric acid in a percolation mode to improve production of fermentable sugars from rice straw. Aqueous NH? was used in the first stage which removed lignin selectively but left most of cellulose (97%) and hemicellulose (77%). Dilute acid was applied in the second stage which removed most of hemicellulose, partially disrupted the crystalline structure of cellulose, and thus enhanced enzymatic digestibility of cellulose in the solids remaining. Under the optimal pretreatment conditions, the enzymatic hydrolysis yields of the two-stage treated samples were 96.9% and 90.8% with enzyme loadings of 60 and 15FPU/g of glucan, respectively. The overall sugar conversions of cellulose and hemicellulose into glucose and xylose by enzymatic and acid hydrolysis reached 89.0% and 71.7%, respectively.     

Increasing cellulose accessibility is more important than removing lignin: A comparison of cellulose solvent‐based lignocellulose fractionation and soaking in aqueous ammonia

While many pretreatments attempt to improve the enzymatic digestibility of biomass by removing lignin, this study shows that improving the surface area accessible to cellulase is a more important factor for achieving a high sugar yield. Here we compared the pretreatment of switchgrass by two methods, cellulose solvent‐ and organic solvent‐based lignocellulose fractionation (COSLIF) and soaking in aqueous ammonia (SAA). Following pretreatment, enzymatic hydrolysis was conducted at two cellulase loadings, 15 filter paper units (FPU)/g glucan and 3 FPU/g glucan, with and without BSA blocking of lignin absorption sites. The hydrolysis results showed that the lignin remaining after SAA had a significant negative effect on cellulase performance, despite the high level of delignification achieved with this pretreatment. No negative effect due to lignin was detected for COSLIF‐treated substrate. SEM micrographs, XRD crystallinity measurements, and cellulose accessibility to cellulase (CAC) determinations confirmed that COSLIF fully disrupted the cell wall structure, resulting in a 16‐fold increase in CAC, while SAA caused a 1.4‐fold CAC increase. A surface plot relating the lignin removal, CAC, and digestibility of numerous samples (both pure cellulosic substrates and lignocellulosic materials pretreated by several methods) was also developed to better understand the relative impacts of delignification and CAC on glucan digestibility. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2011; 108:22–30. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

BSA treatment to enhance enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose in lignin containing substrates

Cellulase and bovine serum albumin (BSA) were added to Avicel cellulose and solids containing 56% cellulose and 28% lignin from dilute sulfuric acid pretreatment of corn stover. Little BSA was adsorbed on Avicel cellulose, while pretreated corn stover solids adsorbed considerable amounts of this protein. On the other hand, cellulase was highly adsorbed on both substrates. Adding a 1% concentration of BSA to dilute acid pretreated corn stover prior to enzyme addition at 15 FPU/g cellulose enhanced filter paper activity in solution by about a factor of 2 and beta-glucosidase activity in solution by about a factor of 14. Overall, these results suggested that BSA treatment reduced adsorption of cellulase and particularly beta-glucosidase on lignin. Of particular note, BSA treatment of pretreated corn stover solids prior to enzymatic hydrolysis increased 72 h glucose yields from about 82% to about 92% at a cellulase loading of 15 FPU/g cellulose or achieved about the same yield at a loading of 7.5 FPU/g cellulose. Similar improvements were also observed for enzymatic hydrolysis of ammonia fiber explosion (AFEX) pretreated corn stover and Douglas fir treated by SO(2) steam explosion and for simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) of BSA pretreated corn stover. In addition, BSA treatment prior to hydrolysis reduced the need for beta-glucosidase supplementation of SSF. The results are consistent with non-specific competitive, irreversible adsorption of BSA on lignin and identify promising strategies to reduce enzyme requirements for cellulose hydrolysis.     

Enhancement of the enzymatic digestibility of sugarcane bagasse by steam pretreatment impregnated with hydrogen peroxide

Sugarcane bagasse was subjected to steam pretreatment impregnated with hydrogen peroxide. Analyses were performed using 2³ factorial designs and enzymatic hydrolysis was performed at two different solid concentrations and with washed and unwashed material to evaluate the importance of this step for obtaining high cellulose conversion. Similar cellulose conversion were obtained at different conditions of pretreatment and hydrolysis. When the cellulose was hydrolyzed using the pretreated material in the most severe conditions of the experimental design (210°C, 15 min and 1.0% hydrogen peroxide), and using 2% (w/w) water‐insoluble solids (WIS), and 15 FPU/g WIS, the cellulose conversion was 86.9%. In contrast, at a milder pretreatment condition (190°C, 15 min and 0.2% hydrogen peroxide) and industrially more realistic conditions of hydrolysis (10% WIS and 10 FPU/g WIS), the cellulose conversion reached 82.2%. The step of washing the pretreated material was very important to obtain high concentrations of fermentable sugars. © 2012 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 2012     

Fast and efficient alkaline peroxide treatment to enhance the enzymatic digestibility of steam-exploded softwood substrates.

The enzymatic digestibility of steam-exploded Douglas-fir wood chips (steam exploded at 195 degrees C, 4.5 min, and 4.5% (w/w) SO(2)) was significantly improved using an optimized alkaline peroxide treatment. Best hydrolysis yields were attained when the steam-exploded material was post-treated with 1% hydrogen peroxide at pH 11.5 and 80 degrees C for 45 min. This alkaline peroxide treatment was applied directly to the water-washed, steam-exploded material eliminating the need for independent alkali treatment with 0.4% NaOH, which has been traditionally used to post-treat wood samples to try to remove residual lignin. Approximately 90% of the lignin in the original wood was solubilized by this novel procedure, leaving a cellulose-rich residue that was completely hydrolyzed within 48 h, using an enzyme loading of 10 FPU/g cellulose. About 82% of the originally available polysaccharide components of the wood could be recovered. The 18% of the carbohydrate that was not recovered was lost primarily to sugar degradation during steam explosion.     

Optimization of Ethanol Production From Microfluidized Wheat Straw by Response Surface Methodology

In this study, wheat straw was pretreated with a microfluidizer to improve its enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol yields. The pretreatment was performed at various pressures (500, 1000, and 1500 bar) and solid loadings (1, 2, and 3%). The microfluidized biomass was then subjected to hydrolysis and simultaneous saccharification and co-fermentation (SSCF) experiments at different enzyme loadings (5, 10, and 15 FPU/g dry wheat straw) using a mutant yeast. The results indicated that the microfluidization method alters the structure of biomass and leads to a reduction in lignin content. The samples pretreated at 1% solid loading contained the minimum lignin concentration and provided the maximum sugar and ethanol yields. These results signified that the microfluidization method is more effective on biomass at low solid loadings. The process conditions were optimized for higher ethanol and sugar yields using response surface methodology (RSM). The optimum pressure and solid and enzyme loadings were found as 1500 bar, 1%, and 15 FPU/g dry wheat straw, respectively. The yields obtained at this condition were 82%, 94%, and 65% for glucose, xylose, and ethanol, respectively. High sugar yields implied that microfluidization is an effective pretreatment method for cellulosic ethanol production. On the other hand, low ethanol yield may indicate that the microorganism was sensitive to inhibitory compounds present in the fermentation medium.     

Enzymatic digestion of liquid hot water pretreated hybrid poplar

Liquid hot (LHW) water pretreatment (LHW) of lignocellulosic material enhances enzymatic conversion of cellulose to glucose by solubilizing hemicellulose fraction of the biomass, while leaving the cellulose more reactive and accessible to cellulase enzymes. Within the range of pretreatment conditions tested in this study, the optimized LHW pretreatment conditions for a 15% (wt/vol) slurry of hybrid poplar were found to be 200^oC, 10 min, which resulted in the highest fermentable sugar yield with minimal formation of sugar decomposition products during the pretreatment. The LHW pretreatment solubilized 62% of hemicellulose as soluble oligomers. Hot‐washing of the pretreated poplar slurry increased the efficiency of hydrolysis by doubling the yield of glucose for a given enzyme dose. The 15% (wt/vol) slurry of hybrid poplar, pretreated at the optimal conditions and hot‐washed, resulted in 54% glucose yield by 15 FPU cellulase per gram glucan after 120 h. The hydrolysate contained 56 g/L glucose and 12 g/L xylose. The effect of cellulase loading on the enzymatic digestibility of the pretreated poplar is also reported. Total monomeric sugar yield (glucose and xylose) reached 67% after 72 h of hydrolysis when 40 FPU cellulase per gram glucan were used. An overall mass balance of the poplar‐to‐ethanol process was established based on the experimentally determined composition and hydrolysis efficiencies of the liquid hot water pretreated poplar. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 2009     

稀碱预处理棕榈残渣制备纤维乙醇

以棕榈残渣(Empty fruit bunch,EFB)为原料,通过预处理、酶解、发酵等过程制备纤维乙醇.首先对比了碱、碱/过氧化氢等预处理条件对棕榈残渣组成及酶解的影响,结果表明稀碱预处理效果较好.适宜的稀碱预处理条件为:NaOH浓度为1％,固液比为1∶10,在40℃浸泡24 h后于121℃下保温30 min,在该条件下,EFB的固体回收率为74.09％,纤维素、半纤维素和木质素的含量分别为44.08％、25.74％和13.89％.对该条件下预处理后的固体样品,以底物浓度5％、酶载量30 FPU/g底物酶解72 h,纤维素和半纤维素的酶解率分别达到84.44％和89.28％.进一步考察了酶载量和底物浓度对酶解的影响以及乙醇批式同步糖化发酵,当酶载量为30 FPU/g底物,底物浓度由5％增加至25％时,利用酿酒酵母Saccharomyces cerevisiae(接种量为5％,VIV)发酵72 h后乙醇的浓度分别为9.76 g/L和35.25 g/L,可分别达到理论得率的79.09％和56.96％.     

Alkaline peroxide assisted wet air oxidation pretreatment approach to enhance enzymatic convertibility of rice husk

Pretreatment of rice husk by alkaline peroxide assisted wet air oxidation (APAWAO) approach was investigated with the aim to enhance the enzymatic convertibility of cellulose in pretreated rice husk. Rice husk was presoaked overnight in 1% (w/v) H₂O₂ solution (pH adjusted to 11.5 using NaOH) (equivalent to 16.67 g H₂O₂ and 3.63 g NaOH per 100 g dry, untreated rice husk) at room temperature, followed by wet air oxidation (WAO). APAWAO pretreatment resulted in solubilization of 67 wt % of hemicellulose and 88 wt % of lignin initially present in raw rice husk. Some amount of oligomeric glucose (?8.3 g/L) was also observed in the APAWAO liquid fraction. APAWAO pretreatment resulted in 13‐fold increase in the amount of glucose that could be obtained from otherwise untreated rice husk. Up to 86 wt % of cellulose in the pretreated rice husk (solid fraction) could be converted into glucose within 24 hours, yielding over 21 g glucose per 100 g original rice husk. Scanning electron microscopy was performed to visualize changes in biomass structure following the APAWAO pretreatment. Enzymatic cellulose convertibility of the pretreated slurry at high dry matter loadings was also investigated. © 2011 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 2011     

Ethanol production from sorghum by a dilute ammonia pretreatment

Sorghum fibers were pretreated with ammonium hydroxide and the effectiveness of the pretreatment evaluated by enzyme hydrolysis and ethanol production. The treatment was carried out by mixing sorghum fibers, ammonia, and water at a ratio of 1:0.14:8 at 160°C for 1 h under 140–160 psi pressure. Approximately 44% lignin and 35% hemicellulose were removed during the process. Untreated and dilute-ammonia-treated fibers at 10% dry solids were hydrolyzed using combinations of commercially available enzymes, Spezyme CP and Novozyme 188. Enzyme combinations were tested at full strength (60 FPU Spezyme CP and 64 CBU Novozyme 188/g glucan) and at half strength (30 FPU Spezyme CP and 32 CBU Novozyme 188/g glucan). Biomass enzyme hydrolysis was conducted for 24 h. Saccharomyces cerevisiae D₅A was added post hydrolysis for conversion of glucose to ethanol. Theoretical cellulose yields for treated biomass were 84% and 73%, and hemicellulose yields were 73% and 55% for full strength and half strength, respectively. Average cellulose yield was 38% and hemicellulose yield was 14.5% for untreated biomass. Ethanol yields were 25 g/100 g dry biomass and 21 g/100 g dry biomass for full strength and half strength enzyme concentrations, respectively. Controls averaged 10 g ethanol/100 g dry biomass.     

Enzymatic hydrolysis and characterization of lignocellulosic biomass exposed to electron beam irradiation

Pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass has been taken up as a global challenge as it comprises a large renewable source of fermentable sugars. In this study, effect of electron beam irradiation (EBI) on a hybrid grass variety investigated as a biomass pretreatment method. Dry biomass samples after characterization were exposed to EBI doses of 0, 75, 150 and 250kGy. The pretreated biomass samples were enzymatically hydrolyzed using Trichoderma reesei ATCC 26921 cellulase for 144h. The enzyme loadings were 15 and 30FPU/g of biomass. The structural changes and degree of crystallinity of the pretreated biomass were studied by FTIR, XRD and SEM analyses. The lignocellulosic biomass sample showed 12.0% extractives, 36.9% cellulose, 28.4% hemicellulose, 11.9% lignin and 8.6% ash. Significant improvements in the reducing sugar and glucose yields were observed in the hydrolysate of EBI pretreated biomass compared to the control. In 250kGy exposed samples 79% of the final reducing sugar yield was released within 48h of hydrolysis at an enzyme loading rate of 30FPU/g of biomass. The IR crystallinity index calculated from the FTIR data and degree of crystallinity (XRD) decreased in the EBI treated samples. A significant negative correlation was observed between degree of crystallinity and the glucose yield from enzymatic hydrolysis.     

Carbohydrate derived‐pseudo‐lignin can retard cellulose biological conversion

Dilute acid as well as water only (hydrothermal) pretreatments often lead to a significant hemicellulose loss to soluble furans and insoluble degradation products, collectively termed as chars and/or pseudo‐lignin. In order to understand the factors contributing to reducing sugar yields from pretreated biomass and the possible influence of hemicellulose derived pseudo‐lignin on cellulose conversion at the moderate to low enzyme loadings necessary for favorable economics, dilute acid pretreatment of Avicel cellulose alone and mixed with beechwood xylan or xylose was performed at various severities. Following pretreatment, the solids were enzymatically hydrolyzed and characterized for chemical composition and physical properties by NMR, FT‐IR, and SEM imaging. It was found that hemicelluloses (xylan) derived‐pseudo‐lignin was formed at even moderate severities and that these insoluble degradation products can significantly retard cellulose hydrolysis. Furthermore, although low severity (CSF ～ 1.94) dilute acid pretreatment of a xylan–Avicel mixture hydrolyzed most of the xylan (98%) and produced negligible amounts of pseudo‐lignin, enzymatic conversion of cellulose dropped significantly (>25%) compared to cellulose pretreated alone at the same conditions. The drop in cellulose conversion was higher than realized for cellulase inhibition by xylooligomers reported previously. Plausible mechanisms are discussed to explain the observed reductions in cellulose conversions. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2013; 110: 737–753. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Effect of enzyme supplementation at moderate cellulase loadings on initial glucose and xylose release from corn stover solids pretreated by leading technologies

Moderate loadings of cellulase enzyme supplemented with beta-glucosidase were applied to solids produced by ammonia fiber expansion (AFEX), ammonia recycle (ARP), controlled pH, dilute sulfuric acid, lime, and sulfur dioxide pretreatments to better understand factors that control glucose and xylose release following 24, 48, and 72 h of hydrolysis and define promising routes to reducing enzyme demands. Glucose removal was higher from all pretreatments than from Avicel cellulose at lower enzyme loadings, but sugar release was a bit lower for solids prepared by dilute sulfuric acid in the Sunds system and by controlled pH pretreatment than from Avicel at higher protein loadings. Inhibition by cellobiose was observed to depend on the type of substrate and pretreatment and hydrolysis times, with a corresponding impact of beta-glucosidase supplementation. Furthermore, for the first time, xylobiose and higher xylooligomers were shown to inhibit enzymatic hydrolysis of pure glucan, pure xylan, and pretreated corn stover, and xylose, xylobiose, and xylotriose were shown to have progressively greater effects on hydrolysis rates. Consistent with this, addition of xylanase and beta-xylosidase improved performance significantly. For a combined mass loading of cellulase and beta-glucosidase of 16.1 mg/g original glucan (about 7.5 FPU/g), glucose release from pretreated solids ranged from 50% to75% of the theoretical maximum and was greater for all pretreatments at all protein loadings compared to pure Avicel cellulose except for solids from controlled pH pretreatment and from dilute acid pretreatment by the Sunds pilot unit. The fraction of xylose released from pretreated solids was always less than for glucose, with the upper limit being about 60% of the maximum for ARP and the Sunds dilute acid pretreatments at a very high protein mass loading of 116 mg/g glucan (about 60 FPU).     

玉米秸秆分批补料获得高还原糖浓度酶解液的条件优化

木质纤维素高浓度还原糖水解液的获得是纤维乙醇产业化发展的方向。在发酵工业领域,分批补料法是实现这一目标的重要研究途径。本研究采用分批补料法对获得高浓度玉米秸秆酶解还原糖的条件进行了优化。以稀硫酸预处理的玉米秸秆为原料,考察了液固比、补加量与补加时间对分批补料糖化的影响。结果表明,秸秆高浓度酶解液条件的初始物料为20％ (重量/体积),木聚糖酶220 U/g (底物),纤维素酶6 FPU/g (底物),果胶酶50 U/g (底物),在24 h、48 h后分批补加8％预处理后的物料,同时添加与补料量相应的木聚糖酶20 U/g (底物),纤维素酶2 FPU/g (底物),72 h后,最终糖化结果与非补料法相比,还原糖浓度从48.5 g/L提高到138.5 g/L,原料的酶解率最终达到理论值的62.5％。试验结果表明补料法可以显著提高秸秆水解液还原糖浓度。     

Pretreatment of corn stover by aqueous ammonia

Corn stover was pretreated with aqueous ammonia in a flow-through column reactor, a process termed ammonia recycled percolation (ARP). This method was highly effective in delignifying of the biomass, reducing the lignin content by 70-85%. Most lignin removal occurred within the first 20 min of the process. Lignin removal by ARP was further confirmed by FTIR analysis and lignin staining. The ARP process solubilized 40-60% of the hemicellulose but left the cellulose intact. The solubilized carbohydrate existed in oligomeric form. Carbohydrate decomposition during the pretreatment was insignificant. Corn stover treated for 90 min exhibited enzymatic digestibility of 99% with 60 FPU/g of glucan enzyme loading, and 92.5% with 10 FPU/g of glucan. The digestibility of ARP treated corn stover was substantially higher than that of alpha-cellulose. The enzymatic digestibility was related with the removal of lignin and hemicellulose, perhaps due to increased surface area and porosity. The SEM pictures indicated that the biomass structure was deformed and its fibers exposed by the pretreatment. The crystallinity index increased with pretreatment reflecting removal of the amorphous portion of biomass. The crystalline structure of the cellulose in the biomass, however, was not changed by the ARP treatment.     

The effects of increasing swelling and anionic charges on the enzymatic hydrolysis of organosolv-pretreated softwoods at low enzyme loadings

Organosolv‐pretreated Lodgepole pine substrates were physically and chemically treated to increase their hydrophilicity and swelling as these are two substrate attributes which have been shown to improve cellulolytic hydrolysis. Surprisingly, mechanical treatment of the organosolv‐treated substrates by PFI‐mill refining did not significantly increase hydrolysis yields despite decreases in particle size and crystallinity and increases in swelling. However, sulfonation of the substrate did, significantly, increase enzymatic hydrolysis at loadings of both 5 and 2.5 FPU g⁻¹ cellulose (from 80% to 95% and from 35% to 80%, respectively). In addition, sulfonation resulted in an increase in the amount of free enzymes detected during the course of hydrolysis to a maximum of 80% after 72 h. This suggested that the beneficial effects of sulfonation were primarily due to a decrease in the non‐specific binding of the cellulases to the lignin. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2011; 108:1549–1558. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Novel Single-step Pretreatment of Steam Explosion and Choline Chloride to De-lignify Corn Stover for Enhancing Enzymatic Edibility

It is important to develop efficient and economically feasible pretreatment methods for lignocellulosic biomass, to increase annual biomass production. A number of pretreatment methods were introduced to promote subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis of biomass for green energy processes. Pretreatment with steam explosion removes the only xylan at high severity but increases lignin content. In this study, corn stover soaked in choline chloride solution before the steam explosion is economically feasible as it reduced cost. Enzymatic hydrolysis of de-lignified corn stover is enhanced by combinatorial pretreatments of steam explosion and choline chloride. Corn stover pretreated with choline chloride at the ratio of 1:2.2 (w/w), 1.0 MPa, 184 °C, for 15 min efficiently expelled 84.7% lignin and 78.9% xylan. The residual solid comprised of 74.59% glucan and 7.51% xylan was changed to 84.2% glucose and 78.3% xylose with enzyme stacking of 10FPU/g. This single-step pretreatment had ∼ 4.5 and 6.4 times higher glucose yield than SE-pretreated and untreated corn stover, respectively. Furthermore, SEM, XRD and FTIR indicated the porosity, crystalline changes, methoxy bond-cleavage respectively due to the lignin and hemicellulose expulsion. Thus, the released acetic acid during this process introduced this novel strategy, which significantly builds the viability of biomass in short pretreatment time.     

Kinetic modeling for enzymatic hydrolysis of pretreated creeping wild ryegrass

A semimechanistic multi‐reaction kinetic model was developed to describe the enzymatic hydrolysis of a lignocellulosic biomass, creeping wild ryegrass (CWR; Leymus triticoides). This model incorporated one homogeneous reaction of cellobiose‐to‐glucose and two heterogeneous reactions of cellulose‐to‐cellobiose and cellulose‐to‐glucose. Adsorption of cellulase onto pretreated CWR during enzymatic hydrolysis was modeled via a Langmuir adsorption isotherm. This is the first kinetic model which incorporated the negative role of lignin (nonproductive adsorption) using a Langmuir‐type isotherm adsorption of cellulase onto lignin. The model also reflected the competitive inhibitions of cellulase by glucose and cellobiose. The Matlab optimization function of “lsqnonlin” was used to fit the model and estimate kinetic parameters based on experimental data generated under typical conditions (8% solid loading and 15 FPU/g‐cellulose enzyme concentration without the addition of background sugars). The model showed high fidelity for predicting cellulose hydrolysis behavior over a broad range of solid loading (4–12%, w/w, dry basis), enzyme concentration (15–150 FPU/ g‐cellulose), sugar inhibition (glucose of 30 and 60 mg/mL and cellobiose of 10 mg/mL). In addition, sensitivity analysis showed that the incorporation of the nonproductive adsorption of cellulase onto lignin significantly improved the predictability of the kinetic model. Our model can serve as a robust tool for developing kinetic models for system optimization of enzymatic hydrolysis, hydrolysis reactor design, and/or other hydrolysis systems with different type of enzymes and substrates. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2009;102: 1558–1569. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Utilization of sugarcane bagasse for bioethanol production: sono-assisted acid hydrolysis approach

In this study, the production of sugar monomers from sugarcane bagasse (SCB) by sono-assisted acid hydrolysis was performed. The SCB was subjected to sono-assisted alkaline pretreatment. The cellulose and hemicellulose recovery observed in the solid content was 99% and 78.95%, respectively and lignin removal observed during the pretreatment was about 75.44%. The solid content obtained was subjected to sono-assisted acid hydrolysis. Under optimized conditions, the maximum hexose and pentose yield observed was 69.06% and 81.35% of theoretical yield, respectively. The hydrolysate obtained was found to contain very less inhibitors, which improved the bioethanol production and the ethanol yield observed was 0.17 g/g of pretreated SCB.