Hydrolysis of Microcrystalline Cellulose to Produce Fermentable Monosaccharides by Plasma Acid

作者:Wang, Ying*; Zhang, Lei; Ji, Ying-Chao; Li, Hong; Wang, Qiu-Hong; Yuan, Bo
来源:Journal of Macromolecular Science Part B-Physics, 2017, 56(4): 203-212.
DOI:10.1080/00222348.2016.1261595

摘要

Plasma acid was obtained by treating distilled water with a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) at atmospheric pressure. The tentative relationship between discharge conditions and pH value of the plasma acid was investigated. In order to optimize the hydrolysis conditions of microcrystalline cellulose with the plasma acid, an orthogonal experiment was carried out and the colorimetric determination of 3,5-dinitro-salicylic acid was applied to measure the concentration of total reduced sugar (TRS). The results showed that the pH value of the plasma acid was related to the discharge time. The acidity of the plasma acid was maintained for several hours and then faded gradually. The microcrystalline cellulose was hydrolyzed effectively by the plasma acid and the optimal hydrolysis conditions were as follows: pH 1.42 of the plasma acid, hydrolysis temperature of 80 degrees C and hydrolysis time of 60 min. Under these conditions, the microcrystalline cellulose with polymerization degree of 200-300 was hydrolyzed completely to produce monosaccharides, including xylose and glucose with the mole ratio of 1:35, as shown by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis. Moreover, the hydrolysis of luffa cellulose with polymerization degree of 500-600 was also carried out. The luffa cellulose was hydrolyzed completely to produce monosaccharides including xylose, mannose and glucose with mole ratio of 6.7:1:218. Therefore, it could be concluded that the main hydrolysis product of both types of cellulose was glucose. The glucose yield of microcrystalline cellulose was 46%, whereas for luffa cellulose it was 41%. This method was an environmentally friendly and effective method to hydrolyze cellulose.