EFFECTS OF CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL PRETREATMENT METHOD ON SUGARCANE BAGASSE FOR BIOETHANOL PRODUCTION

Due to the exhaustion of the world fossil fuels reserves, alongside its negative impacts on the environment, there is a worldwide interest in seeking alternatives preferably from renewable sources. Among the leading alternatives are Second Generation Bio-Ethanol fuels whose sources are mainly non- edible parts of food crops. They are effective since the process ensures a cleaner environment also eliminating competition with food crops for global food supplies. Although there are different process feed, this study focuses on lignocellulose biomass specifically sugarcane bagasse (sugar cane stalk residue) where the effect of both chemical and biological pre- treatment operating conditions for the overall yield of bio- ethanol production were carried out. Lignocellulose biomass is generally a mixture of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin whose polymers of sugar (glucose) have to be unlocked via acid, alkaline or enzymatic hydrolysis (pre-treatment) for ethanol synthesis. Dilute Acid (H2SO4) and alkaline (NaOH) hydrolysis was done to determine the impact of strength of reagents (0.4M, 0.6M and 0.8 M) and process temperature (20OC, 30OC and 50OC) on the overall bioethanol yield. Concentrated H2SO4 with a strength of 6M was also varied with process temperature of 20OC, 30OC and 50OC. Enzymatic hydrolysis with the use of cellulose enzyme and pectinase enzyme cultured from citrobacter freundii bacteria and Aspergillus Niger fungi respectively was also done to determine the effect of volume variation (2ml, 3ml and 5ml) on bioethanol production. UV spectrophotometer analysis showed that the sample pre- treated biologically with 2ml of Aspergillus Niger enzyme yielded the highest glucose concentration of 0.959mg/ml while 6M of concentrated H2SO4 yielded the least with a value of 0.023mg/ml. Generally dilute acid hydrolysis produced low amount of glucose while for 6M of concentrated H2SO4 an increase in process temperature decreases the overall yield of glucose concentration.