Alkaline polyol pulping and enzymatic hydrolysis of softwood: Effect of pulping severity and pulp properties on cellulase activity and overall sugar yield

► The AlkaPolP process enables effective saccharification of recalcitrant softwood. ► The lignocellulose is fractionated in alkaline glycerol at atmospheric pressure. ► 99% of the initial lignin in pine wood were dissolved at short residence times. ► The obtained high-quality pulp fraction can easily be hydrolyzed by cellulases. ► The lower the residual lignin content of pulp the higher the sugar yields.