Characterization of Bioethanol Fuel from Rice and Corn Straws: A Comparative Study

Abstract

In this study, the production and characterization of bioethanol from rice and corn straws were investigated.The bioethanol was produced through dilute acid hydrolysis, fermentation and distillation; and the distillateswere purified by dehydration using zeolite 4A. The physicochemical and fuel properties of the bioethanoldistillates including pH, refractive index, specific gravity, flash point, octane rating and calorific or heatingvalue were evaluated. Further characterization of the biofuel was carried out using FTIR and GC-MS. Theresults indicated that octane number, calorific value, and specific gravity of the corn straw bioethanol obtainedwere significantly higher (p<0.05) compared to rice straw bioethanol. Meanwhile, no statistically significantdifference (p˃0.05) was observed in the flash point, refractive index, pH, pour and cloud points of thebioethanol produced from the two lignocellulosic substrates. Furthermore, the results reveal that pH, octanenumber, specific gravity and flash point are within the ASTM standards while refractive index, cloud and pourpoint were slightly outside the ASTM standard. This reveal potential of the feedstock as a source for Bioethanolproduction.