Biorefining of Waste Paper Biomass: Increasing the Concentration of Glucose by Optimising Enzymatic Hydrolysis.

Elliston, Adam; Collins, Samuel; Faulds, Craig; Roberts, Ian; Waldron, Keith

Waste copier paper is a potential substrate for the production of glucose relevant for manufacture of platform chemicals and intermediates, being composed of 51 % glucan. The yield and concentration of glucose arising from the enzymatic saccharification of solid ink-free copier paper as cellulosic substrate was studied using a range of commercial cellulase preparations. The results show that in all cellulase preparations examined, maximum hydrolysis was only achieved with the addition of beta-glucosidase, despite its presence in the enzyme mixtures. With the use of Accellerase® (cellulase), high substrate loading decreased conversion yield. However, this was overcome if the enzyme was added between 12.5 and 20 FPU g substrate. Furthermore, this reaction condition facilitated continual stirring and enabled sequential additions (up to 50 % w/v) of paper to be made to the hydrolysis reaction, degrading nearly all (99 %) of the cellulose fibres and increasing the final concentration of glucose whilst simultaneously making high substrate concentrations achievable. Under optimal conditions (50 °C, pH 5.0, 72 h), digestions facilitate the production of glucose to much improved concentrations of up to 1.33 mol l.

WASTE paper; BIOCHEMICAL substrates; GLUCOSE; BETA-glucosidase; CELLULASE; HYDROLYSIS

Applied Biochemistry & Biotechnology, 2014, Vol 172, Issue 7, p3621

0273-2289

Academic Journal

10.1007/s12010-014-0767-8