Integrated Production of Biofilm, Bioethanol, and Papermaking Pulp from Wheat Straw

Depending on the production method, traditional paper mills often utilize the black liquor by burning it for energy. Hemicelluloses extracted from the raw material prior to pulping could be utilized to produce biochemical fuels. The aim of this study was to pre-extract hemicelluloses from wheat straw by treating the biomass with hot water and alkali (NaOH or the combination NaOH+ NaBH4) at varying temperatures and chemical concentrations, and also to integrate resulting solid material to produce pulp and to produce bioethanol and biodegradable films from extracted liquor consisting mostly of xylan. Optimum hot water (135 degrees C) and alkali pre-extractions (16.7% NaOH at 50 degrees C) removed 16.5% and 33.6% of the xylan from the straw structure, respectively. The liquid portion of the hot water (135 degrees C) and alkali (16.7% NaOH at 50 degrees C) pre-extracted oven-dry (OD) straw yielded up to 7.79% and 6.81% (g/100 g soluble material) ethanol. Good-quality biodegradable films were produced when some gluten and nanocellulose was added to the extracted xylan. Although the hot water pre-extracted pulp yield was slightly lower, its physical and mechanical pulp properties were comparable to those of the corresponding conventional soda pulp.