Miscanthus x giganteus extractives: a source of valuable phenolic compounds and sterols.
The chemical composition of the lipophilic extracts of bark and core, of the Miscanthus x giganteus stalk, was studied by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Aromatic compounds, sterols, and fatty acids, followed by long-chain fatty alcohols, were the major families of components present in the M. x giganteus stalk. Aromatic compounds are more abundant in the M. x giganteus bark (521 mg/kg of bark), with vanillic acid, vanillin, and p-hydroxybenzaldehyde as the major compounds of this family. In the M. x giganteus core, sterols represent about 949 mg/kg of dry core with beta-sitosterol, 7-oxo-beta-sitosterol, stigmasterol, and campesterol as the major components. The detection of small amounts of esters in the GC-MS analysis with short columns explains the small increase in the abundance of the identified families after alkaline hydrolysis. The high content of valuable sterols and aromatic compounds in M. x giganteus and, particularly, in the core, which is considered a residue in most applications, can open new perspectives for the integrated upgrading of this grass within the biorefinery perspective.
Department of Physical Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, University of A Coruña, Spain.
J J
JJ
Villaverde
R M A
RM
Domingues
C S R
CS
Freire
A J D
AJ
Silvestre
C Pascoal
CP
Neto
P
P
Ligero
A
A
Vega
D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000032:analysis; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D006868:Hydrolysis; D009812:Odorants / Q000032:analysis; D010636:Phenols / Q000032:analysis*; D010840:Phytosterols / Q000032:analysis*; D024301:Plant Bark / Q000737:chemistry; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000737:chemistry*; D018547:Plant Stems / Q000737:chemistry; D006109:Poaceae / Q000737:chemistry*
D005227:Fatty Acids; D010636:Phenols; D010840:Phytosterols; D010936:Plant Extracts