Comparison of Cassava Starch with Corn as a Feedstock for Bioethanol Production

Cassava is a high potential feedstock for bioethanol production in Asian countries, primarily due to high yield of carbohydrate per unit land, and its ability to grow on marginal lands with minimal agrochemical requirements. The objective of this study was to compare the bioethanol production from cassava starch with corn starch using a conventional and a raw/granular starch hydrolyzing process (GSH). The fermentation performance of cassava starch was compared with three corn starch types with different amylose: Amylopectin ratios. The final ethanol concentration with cassava starch was similar to that of two corn starch types, dent corn and waxy corn for both processes. For the cassava starch, the ethanol concentration achieved with GSH process was 2.8% higher than that in the conventional process. Cassava starch yielded the highest fermentation rates of the four starches investigated, during the conventional process. Ethanol production and fermentation profiles comparable with corn, a widely used feedstock, makes cassava starch an attractive substrate for bioethanol production.