Abstract
Sweet sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) contains fermentable sugars in the stem that can be converted to ethanol. The current study aimed at evaluating the performance of three sweet sorghum genotypes with five checks and contributes towards availing suitable sweet sorghum for industrial ethanol production. Field studies were carried out in Kenya at varied locations in a randomized complete block design with three replications. Sorghum was harvested at hard dough stage of grain development and evaluated for several stem juice production traits including plant height, cane yield, juice volume, degrees Brix, total, reducing, and non-reducing sugars, and ethanol yield via juice fermentation. Analyses of variance using SAS version 9.1 showed a significant effect of genotype for morphological characters and ethanol yield. Genotype EUSS10 produced the greatest cane (27.4 T/ha) and juice yield (7806.7 L/ha) whereas ACFC003/12 recorded the greatest ethanol yield (423.1 L/ha). At all sites, EUSS10 had the greatest plant height and days to 50% heading whereas SS04 had the greatest Brix and total sugar concentration. The greatest grain yield and non-reducing sugar concentration was produced by SS17 and SS21, respectively. Results of this study show that though Brix and total sugars are desirable for ethanol yield, cane yield, and juice volume of sweet sorghum determines the ultimate volume of ethanol produced.
Highlights
Juice composition affects the amount of ethanol produced (Widianto et al, 2010) and composition is affected by genotype, environment and crop harvesting time (Almodares and Hadi, 2009)
Genotype EUSS10 took a similar number of days to reach 50% heading with the control SS14, both taking about 4 more days than SS04, EUSS11, EUSS17, and ACFC003/12
This study demonstrates that Brix (%) and total sugar concentration are desirable traits in sorghum stalk juice, juice volume and subsequent sugar yield is the main determinant for ethanol yield
Summary
Sweet sorghum fermentable sugars in the juice are comparable to that of sugarcane and can be fermented directly into ethanol with an efficiency of more than 90% (Wu et al, 2010).Sweet sorghum biomass is renewable and can be used for transportation fuel, electricity and chemical production (Ceclan and Pop, 2012). It stands out as the most promising source of raw material for energy and industry among several bioenergy crops (Gosse, 1996). Higher biomass yield, and wider adaptability than other crops (Pavli et al, 2013) and it is a renewable, cheap and widely available resource (Thanapimmetha et al, 2011)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
