Comparison of Different Ionic Liquids Pretreatment for Corn Stover Enzymatic Saccharification

Sohrab Haghighi Mood, Amir Hossein Golfeshan, Meisam Tabatabaei, Saeed Abbasalizadeh, Mehdi Ardjmand, Gholamreza Salehi Jouzani

Prep Biochem Biotechnol. 2014;44(5):451-63.

PMID: 24397717

Abstract:

Recently, application of ionic liquids (ILs) has received much attention due to their special solvency properties as a promising method of pretreatment for lignocellulosic biomass. Easy recovery of ionic liquids, chemical stability, temperature stability, nonflammability, low vapor pressure, and wide liquidus range are among those unique properties. These solvents are also known as green solvents due to their low vapor pressure. The present study was set to compare the effect of five different ILs, namely, 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate ([EMIM][Ac]), 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([BMIM][Cl]), 1-ethyl-3-methyl imidazolium diethyl phosphate ([EMIM][DEP]), 1-allyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([AMIM][Cl]), and 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium-hydrogen sulfate ([EMIM][HSO₄]), on corn stover in a bioethanol production process. The performance of ILs was evaluated based on the change observed in chemical structure, crystallinity index, cellulose digestibility, and glucose release. Overall, [EMIM][Ac]-pretreated corn stover led to significantly higher saccharification, with cellulose digestibility reaching 69% after 72 hr, whereas digestibility of untreated barley straw was measured at only 21%.

Chemicals Related in the Paper:

Catalog Number	Product Name	Structure	CAS Number	Price
AP412009611	1-Ethyl-3-methylimidazolium hydrogen sulfate		412009-61-1	Price