Comparison of dilute mineral and organic acid pretreatment for enzymatic hydrolysis of wheat straw

The efficiencies of fumaric, maleic, and sulfuric acid in wheat straw pretreatment were compared. As a measure for pretreatment efficiency, enzymatic digestibility of the lignocellulose was determined. Monomeric glucose and xylose concentrations were measured after subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis, as were levels of sugar degradation products furfural and hydroxymethylfurfural after pretreatment. The influence of pretreatment temperature and of wheat straw loading was studied. It is shown that, at 150 °C and 20–30% (w/w) dry wheat straw, the pretreatment with dilute fumaric or maleic acid can be a serious alternative to dilute sulfuric acid pretreatment.