Production of biofuels from soybean straw and hull hydrolysates obtained by subcritical water hydrolysis

The objective of this study was to evaluate the ethanol production by Wickerhamomyces sp. using soybean straw and hull hydrolysates obtained by subcritical water hydrolysis and, afterward, the biogas production using the fermented hydrolysates. Ethanol was produced using the straw and hull hydrolysates diluted and supplement with glucose, reaching 5.57 +/- 0.01 g/L and 6.11 +/- 0.11 g/L, respectively. The fermentation in a bioreactor with changing the pH to 7.0 allowed achieving maximum ethanol production of 4.03 and 3.60 g/L for straw and hull hydrolysates at 24 h, respectively. The biogas productions obtained for the fermented hydrolysates of straw with and without changing the pH were 739 +/- 37 and 652 +/- 34 NmL/g(VSad), respectively. The fermented hydrolysate of hull without changing the pH presented 620 +/- 26 NmL/g(VSad). The soybean residues produced biofuels, indicating these residues show potential as raw material for renewable energy production.

Automated summary

This study evaluated ethanol production by Wickerhamomyces sp. using soybean straw and hull hydrolysates obtained by subcritical water hydrolysis, followed by biogas production using the fermented hydrolysates. The results showed that soybean residues have the potential to be used as raw material for renewable energy production, with promising ethanol and biogas yields.