Efficient production of bioethanol from corn stover by pretreatment with a combination of sulfuric acid and sodium hydroxide.

Corn stover is the most abundant agricultural residue in China and a valuable reservoir for bioethanol production. In this study, we proposed a process for producing bioethanol from corn stover; the pretreatment prior to presaccharification, followed by simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) by using a flocculating Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain, was optimized. Pretreatment with acid-alkali combination (1% H2SO4, 150 °C, 10 min, followed by 1% NaOH, 80°C, 60 min) resulted in efficient lignin removal and excellent recovery of xylose and glucose. A glucose recovery efficiency of 92.3% was obtained by enzymatic saccharification, when the pretreated solid load was 15%. SSF was carried out at 35 °C for 36 hr after presaccharification at 50 °C for 24 hr, and an ethanol yield of 88.2% was achieved at a solid load of 15% and an enzyme dosage of 15 FPU/g pretreated corn stover.