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Effect of Sodium Hydroxide Pretreatment on Lignin Monomeric Components of Miscanthus × giganteus and Enzymatic Hydrolysis

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Abstract

The objective of this research was to study the influence of delignification, caused by NaOH, on lignin chemistry. Miscanthus × giganteus samples were pretreated with various concentrations of sodium hydroxide (0.5, 1.0, and 2.0%, w/v) at different pretreatment times (15, 30, and 60 min) in batch systems. Results indicated that NaOH had a significant effect on lignin removal with delignification ranging from 42.3 to 84.6% depending on the severity of pretreatment. Nitrobenzene oxidation was used to investigate changes in lignin chemistry of pretreated M. giganteus by analyzing syringyl to guaiacyl ratio (S/G ratio) and p-hydroxyphenyl to guaiacyl ratio (H/G ratio). The S/G ratio of pretreated Miscanthus increased from 0.64unpretreated sample to 0.77 while the H/G ratio decreased from 0.48unpretreated sample to 0.28 at 0.5% NaOH pretreatment suggesting that H unit of lignin was most susceptible to NaOH pretreatment. The data also suggested that NaOH concentration was a critical factor in changing lignin chemistry of pretreated Miscanthus. A better understanding of the correlation between pretreatment severities, changes in lignin chemistry, and enzymatic hydrolysis efficiency subsequent to pretreatment of herbaceous grasses warrant further investigations.

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Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the funding from North Carolina State University College of Agriculture.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biological and Agricultural Engineering, North Carolina State University, Campus Box 7625, Raleigh, NC, 27695-7625, USA

    Woochul Jung, Ratna Sharma-Shivappa & Praveen Kolar

  2. Department of Forest Biomaterials, North Carolina State University, Campus Box 8001, Raleigh, NC, 27695-8001, USA

    Dhanalekshmi Savithri

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Jung, W., Savithri, D., Sharma-Shivappa, R. et al. Effect of Sodium Hydroxide Pretreatment on Lignin Monomeric Components of Miscanthus × giganteus and Enzymatic Hydrolysis. Waste Biomass Valor 11, 5891–5900 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12649-019-00859-8

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