Enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol fermentation from corn stover pretreated by wet oxidation

The ethanol fermentation from corn stover pretreated by wet oxidation was studied. The recovery of cellulose and hemicellulose, the enzymatic conversion of cellulose and ethanol yield after the pretreatment were investigated. The cellulose recovery of 94.6% was obtained after the corn stover was pretreated by wet oxidation under the conditions of 195°C, 15 minutes, 12×105 Pa O2. About 88.3% of the cellulose was remained in the solid cake and most hemicellulose and lignin were solubilized. After 24 h of hydrolysis of the solid cake using cellulose, the conversion of cellulose to glucose was about 65.8%. After 142 h of simultaneous saccharificiaton and fermentation with substrate concentration of 8%, about 75.2% of theoretical ethanol yield was obtained. The estimated total ethanol production is 165.7 kg per ton raw material if the cellulose is fully consumed.