Study of the degradation of corn residues to the production of second-generation ethanol

• Grant number: 14/06011-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: May 01, 2014
• End date: April 30, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Chemistry - Physical-Chemistry
• Principal Investigator: Camila Alves de Rezende
• Grantee: Rodrigo Aparecido Pena da Silva
• Host Institution: Instituto de Química (IQ). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

An alternative to increase the biofuel production in a country without expanding its agricultural boundaries is the use of lignocellulosic biomass to produce second generation ethanol. This rich source of energy is not economically feasible yet, but it could become, if routes to obtain ethanol from plant carbohydrates (cellulose and hemicellulose mainly) were developed or improved.The success of ethanol production from carbohydrates depends on the fractionation of the cell wall biopolymers and on the achievement of fermentable sugars. The use of biomass from corn crops to bioethanol production would result in a significant gain of sustainability to this process, since the residues are produced in a large amount worldwide and Brazil is the third larger producer of corn in the world.The aim of this project is to study corn stover degradation, using thermochemical methods of pretreatment to improve biomass hydrolysis. Hydrothermal pretreatments (heating of the lignocellulosic material in water only) will be used, and also thermochemical pretreatments with acids and/or diluted bases. The solid material resulting after the treatments will have their chemical composition and morphology analyzed, which must allow the understanding of the treatments action on the biomass. The results should contribute to optimize thermochemical methods on these samples, besides allowing a comparison between the effect of the presence of acids and alkalis with respect to pure water.

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

CAMARGOS, CAMILLA H. M.; SILVA, RODRIGO A. P.; CSORDAS, YARA; SILVA, LUCIMARA L.; REZENDE, CAMILA A.. Experimentally designed corn biomass fractionation to obtain lignin nanoparticles and fermentable sugars. INDUSTRIAL CROPS AND PRODUCTS, v. 140, NOV 15 2019. (16/13602-7, 18/23769-1, 14/06011-7)