Effect of Water-impregnation on Steam Explosion of Pinus densiflora

Abstract

This study addresses the biorefinery feedstock from Pinus densiflora. This raw material is a major tree species in the Republic of Korea; it is renewable, has cost-effective, and is readily available. In this study, steam explosion of P. densiflora was performed in a reactor at 225 °C and with 1 to 13 min reaction times with or without previous water impregnation. The combined severity factor (Ro), which is an expression relating the reaction temperature and reaction time used in the steam explosion treatment, ranged from 3.68 to 4.79. The influence of both impregnation and steam explosion conditions were investigated by examining color variations, chemical composition, and mass balance on the pretreated solids. The results showed that steam-exploded P. densiflora that was not impregnated with water exhibited significantly darker color (chroma 28.8-41.4) than water-impregnated and steam-exploded P. densiflora (chroma 18.8-37.3). The increased α–cellulose and lignin contents were detected as the severity factor increased. Furthermore, the α–cellulose and lignin contents in the non-impregnated/steam-exploded P. densiflora were higher than those in the water-impregnated/steam-exploded P. densiflora. However, the decreased holocellulose content was detected as the severity factor increased. In mass balance, the holocellulose yield from water-impregnated/steam-exploded P. densiflora was higher than that from the non-impregnated P. densiflora.