Effect of varying the concentration of sulphuric acid and ammonium hydroxide on the release of cellulose from isolated cell wall component of corn cob

Abstract

The scarcity and high price associated with fossil fuel has urged countries to research resources for alternative energy sources. Biofuels like bioethanol produced from lignocellulosic biomass (corn cob) were considered potential alternative. Cellulose composition from isolated cell wall material of corn cobs was investigated under two different pre-treatments using H₂SO₄ and NH₄OH at varying concentrations of 5%, 10%, 20%, 30% and 40%. Cell wall not treated acted as control. Colorimetric anthrone-assay followed by absorbance reading at 625nm revealed that glucose is present in reasonable amount in corn cob. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) indicated significant differences among pre-treated compared to untreated (Control) corn cob samples at p≤0.05. Acid pre-treatment showed better glucose yield compared to alkali pre-treatment with results revealing 20% (19.37µg/ml) H₂SO₄ to be the optimal concentration producing highest glucose yield. The study reveals the potential of corn cob as a lignocellulosic feed stock for biofuel production.