The Effects of Microwave-Assisted Pretreatment and Cofermentation on Bioethanol Production from Elephant Grass

Abstract

The process of acid hydrolysis using conventional methods at high concentrations results in products having lower yields, and it needs a longer time of process; therefore, it becomes less effective. In this study, we analyzed the effects of microwave-assisted pretreatment and cofermentation on bioethanol production from elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum). We used a combination of delignification techniques and acid hydrolysis by employing a microwave-assisted pretreatment method on elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum) as a lignocellulosic material. This was followed by cofermentation with Saccharomyces cerevisiae ITB-R89 and Pichia stipitis ITB-R58 to produce bioethanol. The optimal sugar mixtures (fructose and xylose) of the hydrolysis product were subsequently converted into bioethanol by cofermentation with S. cerevisiae ITB-R89 and P. stipitis ITB-R58, carried out with varying concentrations of inoculum for 5 days (48 h) at 30°C and pH 4.5. The high-power liquid chromatographic analysis revealed that the optimal inoculum concentration capable of converting 76.15% of the sugar mixture substrate (glucose and xylose) to 10.79 g/L (34.74% yield) of bioethanol was 10% (v/v). The optimal rate of ethanol production was 0.45 g/L/d, corresponding to a fermentation efficiency of 69.48%.