Title
Versatile thermobaric setup and production of hydrotropic cellulose therein
Authors
IGOR N. PAVLOV MARINA N. DENISOVA EKATERINA I. MAKAROVA VERA V. BUDAEVA and GENNADY V. SAKOVICH

Received May 7, 2014
Published Volume 49 Issue 9-10 October-December
Keywords Miscanthus sinensis Andersson, hydrotropic delignification, fermentolysis, pretreatment, lignocellulosic biomass

Abstract
The application of cellulosic biomass makes it possible to avoid problems of utilizing food resources in the biofuel technology and to enhance the competitiveness of biofuels by using cheap and available raw materials. The development of technologies for lignocellulose-to-biofuel conversion by fermentolysis methods is connected with employing a complex processing operation to release cellulose and improve its surface bioaccessibility. A versatile thermobaric setup has been developed to implement pretreatments conforming to the principles of environmental safety, effective delignification, and related costs’ reduction. Miscanthus sinensis Andersson was subjected to hydrotropic pulping with an aqueous solution of sodium benzoate under autoclaving conditions. This involves treatment at 180 °C under excess pressure of 1.0 MPa and isolation of cellulose from the reaction mass. The resultant fibrous residue was hydrolyzed using commercial enzymes. The fibrous fractions were eventually produced in a high yield of 43-46% on a feedstock basis, the content of α-cellulose and acid-insoluble lignin being 85-86% and 7.0-7.6%, respectively. The substrate was found to have a satisfactory reactivity to fermentolysis, the yield of reducing agents being 65.5% of the weight in 72 h hydrolysis.