Quality of the raw material, fermentative microbiota and production of ethanol under attack from Mahanarva fimbriolata in sugarcane

• Grant number: 06/03005-0
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: October 01, 2006
• End date: April 30, 2009
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Microbiology - Applied Microbiology
• Principal Investigator: Márcia Justino Rossini Mutton
• Grantee: Márcia Justino Rossini Mutton
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias (FCAV). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Jaboticabal. Jaboticabal , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The sugarcane spittlebug has become a major pest in the Central-South region of Brazil due to the expansion of the areas of cane harvest without burning. The covering of straw left on the ground after the harvest offers ideal conditions for the survival of nymphs of the insect. Recent research indicates that the pest causes production losses, reducing the technological quality of the raw material destined for industrial processing. The objective of the present research is to study the influence of the damage done to sugarcane by the spittlebug regarding the quality of the raw material destined for processing, stability of the yeasts and fermentative performance, in addition to the characteristics of ethanol production with yeast recycling. The results of this work will indicate how the spittlebug attacks interfere in the process of alcohol production from the field to the final product. (AU)