Enhanced enzymatic sugar production from corn stover by combination of water extraction and glycerol-assisted instant catapult steam explosion
Glycerol-assisted Instant Catapult Steam Explosion (ICSE) of lignocellulose is an effective pretreatment method for enhancing sugar production compared to glycerol-free ICSE. In this study, prof. Song and his team at Henan Agricultural University (China) disclosed a glycerol-assisted ICSE approach for pretreatment of corn stover in order to elucidate the reaction mechanisms and further optimize the process. It was shown that water extraction of corn stover prior to ICSE reduced pseudo-lignin formation. The combination of water extraction and glycerol-assisted ICSE led to the formation of lignin with a lower molecular weight (MW) of 2851 g/mole than 3521 g/mole of that from the combination of water extraction and glycerol-free ICSE.