• Energy Research

Abstract Rapeseed is an important source of oil for biodiesel production. Nevertheless, the residues of the cultivation are lacking of practical applications. As a lignocellulosic material, their conversion into ethanol can be of interest. In this work, different process configurations, separate hydrolysis and fermentation (SHF), simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF), and prehydrolysis and simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (PSSF), were compared at high solids loading (7.5%, 15% and 20% w/v) to produce ethanol from rapeseed straw pretreated by sulfuric acid. Results show that the highest ethanol concentration (39.9 g/L) was obtained from SHF configuration at the highest substrate loading (20% w/v). This product concentration is high enough for distillation purposes from an economic point of view. The final ethanol concentrations and yields did not differ significantly between SSF and PSSF regardless of the solids loading and, for 7.5% and 15% (w/v) solids loading were slightly higher than those attained in the SHF. However, at the highest solids loading the separate process appears to be more favorable.

Olive tree biomass (OTB) represents an interesting feedstock for bioethanol production. In this study, olive tree pruning was water extracted and pretreated by dilute sulfuric acid to achieve high sugar recoveries from cellulosic and hemicellulosic fractions. Temperature (160 to 200 °C), acid concentration (0 to 8 g acid/100 g extracted raw material), and solids loading (15% to 35% w/v) were selected as operation variables and modified according to a Box-Behnken experimental design. The optimal conditions for the acid pretreatment were 160 °C, 4.9 g sulfuric acid/100 g biomass, and 35% solids loading (w/v), according to multiple criteria that considered the maximization of both the hemicellulosic sugars concentration in prehydrolysate and the overall sugar yield. These optimized conditions yielded a sugar concentration of 79.8 g/L, corresponding to an overall yield of 39.8 g total sugars/100 g extracted OTB. The fermentability of hemicellulosic sugars prehydrolysates from the acid pretreatment was evaluated by Escherichia coli after a detoxification stage by overliming. The prehydrolysates with lower concentrations of toxic compounds were fermented and achieved ethanol yields higher than 80% of the theoretical ethanol yield.

Rapeseed straw constitutes an agricultural residue with great potential as feedstock for ethanol production. In this work, uncatalyzed steam explosion was carried out as a pretreatment to increase the enzymatic digestibility of rapeseed straw. Experimental statistical design and response surface methodology were used to evaluate the influence of the temperature (185-215°C) and the process time (2.5-7.5min). According to the rotatable central composite design applied, 215°C and 7.5min were confirmed to be the optimal conditions, considering the maximization of enzymatic hydrolysis yield as optimization criterion. These conditions led to a maximum yield of 72.3%, equivalent to 81% of potential glucose in pretreated solid. Different configurations for bioethanol production from steam exploded rapeseed straw were investigated using the pretreated solid obtained under optimal conditions as a substrate. As a relevant result, concentrations of ethanol as high as 43.6g/L (5.5% by volume) were obtained as a consequence of using 20% (w/v) solid loading, equivalent to 12.4g ethanol/100g biomass.

In this work the pretreatment of sunflower stalks by dilute sulfuric acid is studied. Pretreatment temperature and the concentration of acid solution were selected as operation variables and modified according to a central rotatable composite experimental design. Based on previous studies pretreatment time was kept constant (5 min) while the variation range for temperature and acid concentration was centered at 175°C and 1.25% (w/v) respectively. Following pretreatment the insoluble solids were separated by filtration and further submitted to enzymatic hydrolysis, while liquid fractions were analyzed for sugars and inhibitors. Response surface methodology was applied to analyze results based on the combined severity of pretreatment experiments. Optimized results show that up to 33 g of glucose and xylose per 100g raw material (65% of the glucose and xylose present in the raw material) may be available for fermentation after pretreatment at 167°C and 1.3% sulfuric acid concentration.

Biomass generated from pruning of olive trees is an abundant lignocellulosic residue that has been proposed for bioethanol production by means of a process including pretreatment, enzymatic hydrolysis, and fermentation. The pretreatment is critical step in the process, which allows the fractionation of the biomass. Lignin is the main byproduct of the process, and then its valorization is a key factor for the economical viability of the bioethanol production from olive tree pruning. In this work, two types of pretreatments have been compared steam explosion and organosolv in terms of the produced lignin suitability for further applications in the so-called new biorefinery concept. Starting from this fact, special emphasis was given to determine the physico-chemical properties of lignins produced by the two processes in order to determine their suitability for the development of added value products (e.g. materials, building blocks, additives). Overall, the lignin obtained from organosolv pretreatment had better properties for its further valorization as it presents more suitable qualities for higher-added value applications like fine phenolic chemicals production.

Olive tree biomass (OTB) is an agricultural residue which can be used as raw material for bioethanol production. OTB was pretreated with 0.05-0.275 M FeCl(3) solutions at 120-180 °C for 0-30 min. Enzymatic hydrolysis yields were used for assessing pretreatment performance. Optimum FeCl(3) pretreatment conditions were found to be 152.6 °C, 0.26 M FeCl(3) for 30 min. Under such conditions, 100% of hemicellulose was removed, and enzymatic hydrolysis of pretreated solids resulted in a yield of 36.6g glucose/100g of glucose in the raw material. Hemicellulosic sugar recovery in the prehydrolysate was 63.2%. Results compare well with those obtained by other pretreatment strategies on the same raw material, confirming FeCl(3) solutions as a new, feasible approach for bioethanol production.

The ethanolic fermentation of liquid fractions (hydrolysates) issued from dilute acid pre-treatment of olive tree biomass by Pichia stipitis is reported for the first time. On the one side, P. stipitis has been reported as the most promising naturally occurring C5 fermenting microorganism; on the other side, olive tree biomass is a renewable, low cost, and lacking of alternatives agricultural residue especially abundant in Mediterranean countries. The study was performed in two steps. First, the fermentation performance of P. stipitis was evaluated on a fermentation medium also containing the main inhibitors found in these hydrolysates (acetic acid, formic acid, and furfural), as well as glucose and xylose as carbon sources. The effect of inhibitors, individually or in a mixture, on kinetic and yield parameters was calculated. In a second step, hydrolysates obtained from 1% (w/w) sulfuric acid pre-treatment of olive tree biomass at 190ºC for 10 min were used as a real fermentation medium with the same microorganism. Due to inhibition, effective fermentation required dilution of the hydrolysate and either overliming or activated charcoal treatment. Results show that ethanol yields obtained from hydrolysates, ranging from 0.35 to 0.42 g/g, are similar to those from synthetic medium, although the process proceeds at lower rates. Inhibiting compounds affect the fermentation performance in a synergistic way. Furfural is rapidly assimilated by the yeast; acetic acid and formic acid concentrations decrease slowly during the process. Activated charcoal or overliming detoxification improve the fermentability of diluted hydrolysates.

Currently, interest in finding new feedstock as sources of natural food antioxidants is growing. The extracted olive pomace (EOP), which is an agro-industrial residue from the olive pomace extracting industries, is generated yearly in big amounts, mainly in the Mediterranean countries. EOP was subjected to an ultrasound assisted extraction with ethanol-water mixtures. The effect of main parameters, such as ethanol concentration (30–70% v/v), ultrasound amplitude (20–80%), and extraction time (5–15 min), on the extraction of antioxidant compounds was evaluated according to a Box–Behnken experimental design. The antioxidant capacity of the resulting extracts was determined by measuring their content in total phenolic compounds (TPC) and flavonoids (TFC), as well as their antioxidant activity by DPPH, ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), and ABTS assays. Considering the simultaneous maximization of these five responses, the optimal conditions were found to be 43.2% ethanol concentration, 70% amplitude, and 15 min. The ultrasound assisted extraction of EOP under these optimized conditions yielded an extract with a phenolic and flavonoid content (per gram of EOP) of 57.5 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE) and 126.9 mg rutin equivalent (RE), respectively. Likewise, the values for DPPH, ABTS, and FRAP assay (per gram of EOP) of 56.7, 139.1, and 64.9 mg Trolox equivalent, respectively were determined in the optimized extract.