A Study of Chemical Composition and Enzymatic Hydrolysis of Solid Organic Waste from Agrosilvopastoral Systems

Abstract

Agrosilvopastoral waste, regarding agriculture and agro-industry sectors, is pointed as a promising sustainable raw material for biofuels production, specially concerning exploitation of lignocellulosic organic residues for fermentable sugars and cellulosic ethanol output, being therefore necessary to investigate the potential of these substrates concerning chemical composition, since many of them were not reported yet in literature. Being so, this paper presents a study of chemical composition and enzymatic hydrolysis of wastes from the four main crops in Maranhão, Brazil (soy, cassava, rice and corn) which are usually underutilized or abandoned in the field. The results of enzymatic hydrolysis were satisfactory for both soy and particularly corn residues, which presented total reducing sugars (TRS) percentage greater than 50% in comparison with pure cellulose.

Production and Application of Lignin-Based Chemicals and Materials in the Cellulosic Ethanol Production: An Overview on Lignin Closed-Loop Biorefinery Approaches

“…It is noteworthy that several engineered strains can effectively convert pentoses into ethanol [29]. Due to less specificity for cellulose, more significant environmental impact, and the occurrence of corrosion in reactors, processes based on the acid route have been replaced by enzyme technology [30]. Cellulases, xylanases, β-glucosidases, and accessory enzymes are some of the enzymes used to digest the lignocellulosic matrix [2,6]; however, the presence of lignin is an obstacle to the success of the process.…”

Apricot Seed Shells and Walnut Shells as Unconventional Sugars and Lignin Sources

“…The main task of any pretreatment of biomass is the mitigation of the recalcitrance and increase in the accessibility of cellulose [ 16 ]. Even though many researchers have worked on developing different methods, including a mechanical one [ 17 ], extraction with organic solvents [ 18 ], a hydrothermal one [ 19 ], a dilute acid one [ 20 ], and an alkaline one [ 21 ], most of these papers are related to the study of the sugar yield without considering the structural changes of each biomass constituent, including lignin.…”