The effects of steam explosion and organic solvent extraction on biomass composition and enzyme hydrolysis were examined. Two wood species, birch and pine, were steam exploded under different combinations of temperature and residence time and then an extraction with a mixture of methyl isobutyl ketone (MIBK)/ethanol/water was performed. Chemical analyses of the biomass before and after the pretreatment steps showed hemicellulose degradation, and an increase in the amount of acid insoluble residue and the enzyme hydrolysis. As expected, in all cases birch was more easily hydrolyzed than pine. The results showed that as the severity of the pretreatment was increased the reactivity of the substrate increased but the overall sugar yield was reduced. This study also showed that as the concentration of the organic mixture was changed, the reactivity of the substrate was modified. For higher concentrations of MIBK, the amount of phenolics increased due to their affinity for the solvent. This also lead to higher enzyme hydrolysis rates

Combination of steam explosion and organic solvent extraction for improving enzymatic hydrolysis of Birch and Pine

245th National Meeting (2013)

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