Abstract
The efficient transformation of lignocellulosic biomass into fermentable sugars is essential for building bioeconomies. Sugarcane is an important agricultural crop in a number of Latin American countries, including Brazil and Argentina. Herein culms from two different sugarcane (SC384 and SC724) and two energy cane varieties (EC3116 and EC3118) bred in Argentina were evaluated for sustainable production of second-generation biofuels and green chemicals. Changes in the biomass crystallinity, structure, and morphology introduced by pretreatments were investigated using X-ray diffraction (DRX), confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques. Enzymatic hydrolysis yields of untreated and pretreated sugarcane and energy cane culms were determined and correlated with physical analyses and chemical composition characterizations. Overall, after combined acid and alkali pretreatment, enzymatic convertibility was highly efficient for all studied sugarcane and energy cane varieties, reaching over 97% of theoretical conversion yields. High crystallinity indices and crystallite sizes of pretreated culms and SEM results and CLSM were consistent with the removal of lignin, solubilization of hemicellulose, and amorphous parts of lignocellulose imprinted by the pretreatments. High potential of culms from sugarcane and energy cane varieties cultivated in Argentina for sustainable production of renewable lignocellulosic sugars and their transformation into green chemicals and fuels was demonstrated.
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The data will be made available on request.
Abbreviations
- AFEX:
-
Ammonia fiber expansion
- ANOVA:
-
Analysis of variance
- CrI:
-
Crystallinity index
- DRX:
-
X-ray diffraction
- CLSM:
-
Confocal laser scanning microscopy
- EC:
-
Energy cane culm
- EC3116:
-
Energy cane variety INTA 05-3116
- EC3118:
-
Energy cane variety INTA 05-3118
- EHY:
-
Enzymatic hydrolysis yields
- GIMP:
-
GNU Image Manipulation Program
- HPLC:
-
High-performance liquid chromatography
- INTA:
-
National Institute of Agricultural Technology of Argentina
- LPMOs:
-
Lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases
- SC:
-
Sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) culm
- SC384:
-
Sugarcane variety LCP 85-384
- SC724:
-
Sugarcane variety NA 78-724
- SEM:
-
Scanning electron microscopy
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Funding
This work was supported by Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) via Grant 2015/13684-0, by Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) via Grants 423693/2016-6 and 303988/2016-9, by Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA) via Grant PNAIyAV 2019-PE-E6-I114-001, and by Ministry of Science and Technology of Argentina via Grant PICT 2016-1670. This work was also supported by CAPES (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior) via a PhD fellowship to AOK. JMG has a fellowship from Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET). We thank the field team of INTA Sugarcane Breeding Program for its technical assistance.
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AOK: Formal analysis; Investigation; Methodology; Writing—original draft; VOAP: Conceptualization; Data curation; Formal analysis; Investigation; Methodology; Project administration; Validation; Writing—original draft; MCES: Formal analysis; Investigation; Methodology; Writing—original draft; BDN: Supervision; Writing—original draft. JMG: Formal analysis; Investigation; Methodology; Writing—original draft; AA: Formal analysis; Investigation; Methodology; Writing—original draft. LEE: Formal analysis; Investigation; Methodology; Writing—original draft; IP: Conceptualization; Formal analysis; Funding acquisition; Investigation; Methodology; Resources; Supervision; Validation; Writing—original draft; Writing—review & editing.
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Kane, A.O., Pellergini, V.O.A., Espirito Santo, M.C. et al. Evaluating the Potential of Culms from Sugarcane and Energy Cane Varieties Grown in Argentina for Second-Generation Ethanol Production. Waste Biomass Valor 13, 329–343 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12649-021-01528-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12649-021-01528-5