Abstract
In order to more conveniently simulate and optimize the solubilization of sugarcane bagasse components during formic acid (FA) fractionation, an extended combined severity factor (CSFext) was defined to integrate various operation parameters as a single factor. Two phenomenological models based on Arrhenius and Logistic equations were further used to describe the phenomenological kinetics. Different data-processing methods were compared to fit the severity parameters and model constants. Both Arrhenius-based and Logistic-based models show satisfying fitting results, though the values of Arrhenius-based CSFext (A-CSFext) and Logistic-based CSFext (L-CSFext) were somewhat different under the same fractionation condition. The solubilization of biomass components increased with CSFext, but two distinct stages could be observed with inflection points at A-CSFext of 42 or L-CSFext of 43, corresponding to bulk and residual solubilization stages, respectively. For the enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulosic solids, the highest initial enzymatic glucan conversion (EGC@6h) was obtained at A-CSFext of 39–40 or A-CSFext of 40–41; however, for a long hydrolysis period (72 h), relatively high glucan conversion (EGC@72h) was observed at A-CSFext of 42–43 or A-CSFext of 43–44. Post-treatment for deformylation with a small amount of lime could help to recover the cellulose digestibility.
Highlights
The above results indicated that CSFext could be applied as an integrated parameter to evaluate the phenomenological kinetics of formic acid (FA) fractionation of sugarcane bagasse
Two phenomenological models based on the Arrhenius equation and modified Logistic equation were further used to describe the phenomenological kinetics, respectively
Both Arrhenius-based and Logistic-based models showed a satisfying fitting accuracy for prediction of experimental data of xylan, lignin and xylan plus lignin solubilization, indicating that the linear models could generally be used to describe the phenomenological relationship between the solubilization of biomass components and CSFext
Summary
Lignocellulosic biomass, with a huge yield and low price, has been considered as one of the most important renewable feedstocks for producing biofuels, such as ethanol, which has been commercially used as a substitute for fossil gasoline [2,3]. During the bioconversion of lignocellulose to bioethanol, pretreatment is a key step to improve the cellulose hydrolyzability for efficient release of sugars from the plant cell wall. This was mainly due to the biomass recalcitrance constructed by cell wall components, mainly hemicellulose and lignin, and their complicated interactions [4]. Various pretreatment methods have been developed to overcome biomass recalcitrance, among which organosolv pretreatment can provide a unique way of achieving both the effective
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