Optimization of Acid Hydrolysis of Sugarcane Bagasse and Investigations on its Fermentability for the Production of Xylitol by Candida guilliermondii

Abstract

The dilute-acid hydrolysis of sugarcane bagasse was optimized using a statistical experimental design resulting in hydrolysates containing 57.25 g/L of xylose, which were fermented with a high inoculum concentration (10 g/L of the yeast Candida guilliermondii IM/UFRJ 50088). The addition of urea reduced the time of conversion (tC) to 75 h (without nitrogen source addition t C > 127 h), and, consequently, improving the rates of xylitol bioproduction. Fermentator experiments, using the optimized conditions, resulted in enhanced conversion rates, reducing t C to 30 h. The stability of the yeast in the hydrolysate was also verified in a 480-h cultivation.Index EntriesSugarcane bagassedilute-acid hydrolysis optimizationsugarcane bagasse hydrolysatexylitolbioproduction