Compositional analysis of water-soluble materials in corn stover.
Corn stover is one of the leading feedstock candidates for commodity-scale biomass-to-ethanol processing. The composition of water-soluble materials in corn stover has been determined with greater than 90% mass closure in four of five representative samples. The mass percentage of water-soluble materials in tested stover samples varied from 14 to 27% on a dry weight basis. Over 30 previously unknown constituents of aqueous extracts were identified and quantified using a variety of chromatographic techniques. Monomeric sugars (primarily glucose and fructose) were found to be the predominant water-soluble components of corn stover, accounting for 30-46% of the dry weight of extractives (4-12% of the dry weight of feedstocks). Additional constituents contributing to the mass balance for extractives included various alditols (3-7%), aliphatic acids (7-21%), inorganic ions (10-18%), oligomeric sugars (4-12%), and a distribution of oligomers tentatively identified as being derived from phenolic glycosides (10-18%).
Chen
Shou-Feng
SF
Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, Baylor University, One Bear Place, Box 97348, Waco, Texas 76798, USA.
Mowery
Richard A
RA
Scarlata
Christopher J
CJ
Chambliss
C Kevin
CK
D002241:Carbohydrates / Q000032:analysis; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000032:analysis; D012995:Solubility; D013402:Sugar Alcohols / Q000032:analysis; D014867:Water; D003313:Zea mays / Q000737:chemistry*
D002241:Carbohydrates; D005227:Fatty Acids; D013402:Sugar Alcohols; D014867:Water