Fermentation of cellulosic hydrolysates obtained by enzymatic saccharification of sugarcane bagasse pretreated by hydrothermal processing

This work aims to evaluate the fermentability of cellulosic hydrolysates obtained by enzymatic saccharification of sugarcane bagasse pretreated by hydrothermal processing using Candida guilliermondii FTI 20037 yeast. The inoculum was obtained from yeast culture in a medium containing glucose as a carbon source supplemented with rice bran extract, CaCl₂·2H₂O and (NH₄)₂SO₄ in 50 mL Erlenmeyer flasks, containing 20 mL of medium, initial 5.5 pH under agitation of an orbital shaker (200 rpm) at 30°C for 24 h. The cellulosic hydrolysates, prior to being used as a fermentation medium, were autoclaved for 15 min at 0.5 atm and supplemented with the same nutrients employed for the inoculum, except the glucose, using the same conditions for the inoculum, but with a period of 48 h. Preliminary results showed the highest consumption of glucose (97%) for all the hydrolysates, at 28 h of fermentation. The highest concentration of ethanol (20.5 g/L) was found in the procedure of sugarcane bagasse pretreated by hydrothermal processing (195°C/10 min in 20 L reactor) and delignificated with NaOH 1.0% (w/v), 100°C, 1 h in 500 mL stainless steel ampoules immersed in an oil bath.