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Pretreatment is crucial for effective enzymatic saccharification of lignocellulose such as sugarcane bagasse (SCB). In the present study, SCB was pretreated with five kinds of heterogeneous Fenton‐like systems (HFSs), respectively, in which α‐FeOOH, α‐Fe2O3, Fe3O4, and FeS2 worked as four traditional heterogeneous Fenton‐like catalysts (HFCs), while FeVO4 worked as a novel HFC. The enzymatic reducing sugar conversion rate was then compared among SCB after different heterogeneous Fenton‐like pretreatments (HFPs), and the optimal HFS and pretreatment conditions were determined. The mechanism underlying the difference in saccharification efficiency was elucidated by analyzing the composition and morphology of SCB. Moreover, the ion dissolution characteristics, variation of pH and Eh values, H2O2 and hydroxyl radical (·OH) concentration of FeVO4 and α‐Fe2O3 HFSs were compared. The results revealed that the sugar conversion rate of SCB pretreated with FeVO4 HFS reached up to 58.25%, which was obviously higher than that under other HFPs. In addition, the surface morphology and composition of the pretreated SCB with FeVO4 HFS were more conducive to enzymatic saccharification. Compared with α‐Fe2O3, FeVO4 could utilize H2O2 more efficiently, since the dissolved Fe3+ and V5+ can both react with H2O2 to produce more ·OH, resulting in a higher hemicellulose and lignin removal rate and a higher enzymatic sugar conversion rate. It can be concluded that FeVO4 HFP is a promising approach for lignocellulose pretreatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sugarcane bagasse (SCB) is the most abundant residue of the sugar and alcohol industry and its use is predominantly in these same industries as a source of energy through burning. This work aims to diversify the proposals for the use of this residue; thus, the use of SCB in the alumina-supported nickel catalysts synthesis was investigated. Two routes were researched using SCB: one, the SCB was used in the alumina (catalytic support) synthesis to obtain the dimensionally predetermined materials and another to get powder materials. The materials were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), N2 physisorption at 77 K, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and hydrogen temperature-programmed reduction (H2-TPR). The presence of SCB in the synthesis of powder materials facilitated the incorporation of nickel particles into the crystalline lattice of the support, decreasing active nickel content for catalytic. On the other hand, the pre-dimensioned catalytic materials exhibited higher crystallinity, lower nickel oxide reduction temperature and greater disposal of active nickel, resulting in higher production of ordered carbon (carbon nanotubes) and H2 COx-free under milder conditions in the methane decomposition reaction at 500 °C for 30 min. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sugar and coffee industries produce considerable amounts of sugarcane bagasse and spent coffee grounds as waste products, these products having very limited value—plant fertilizer for the former and livestock feed or energy source for the latter-. Their valorization potential as construction materials in the built environment is being investigated. In this work, a higher value use of these two agri-wastes is presented through the elaboration and characterization of an environmentally friendly composite material (Starch-bonded sugarcane Bagasse spent Coffee Composite SBCC) for building applications, based on starch-bonded spent coffee grounds reinforced with sugarcane bagasse fibers. The advantages of fiber reinforcement are evaluated by comparison with a previously studied composition solely based on starch and coffee grounds. Samples are characterized in terms of absolute and bulk density, sound absorption coefficient, compressive strength, as well as hygrothermal properties. Fiber incorporation led to a relatively lighter material than the non-reinforced ones, with a bulk density of 321 kg.m−3 while presenting increased mechanical properties, withstanding maximum compression stress of 2.8 MPa, and presenting Young's modulus of 3.15 MPa. Both thermal conductivity (0.088 W.m−1.K−1) and diffusivity showed a good thermal insulation capacity (0.2 m2.s−1) of the bagasse-reinforced composite. The potential of this new non-structural composite as an acoustic insulator is also assessed, results show that the addition of bagasse did not affect sound absorption compared to the previously studied composites without fibers. In light of the experimental characterization, this new composite would be suitable for use as a non-structural material in building applications. Statement of Novelty: The novelty lies in the association of these two types of co-products (Sugarcane bagasse and Spend Coffee grounds) which can be found on a large scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reproductive potential of earthworm Eudrilus eugeniae is influenced by the sugarcane bagasse, cow dung, and elephant dung as dietary supplements. The aim of the present work is to determine the earthworm reproduction through the following reproductive parameters, viz., hatching of cocoons, sperm count, and fatty acid profile in seminal vesicle of sperm cells analyzed for the first time. Thus, the gas chromatography mass spectroscopy (GCMS) technique is used to identify the bioactive fatty acids present in the sperm cells of earthworm, and there is a lack of information on its fatty acid profile. Interestingly in all the experimental treatments, the presence of essential saturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids, viz., palmitic acid, linoleic acid, octadecanoic acid methyl ester, oleic acid, and cholesterol compounds, was recorded. The results revealed that the earthworm feed in T3 (50% sugarcane bagasse + 25% cow dung + 25% elephant dung) showed maximum hatching of cocoon, sperm count, and also the presence of higher percentage of cholestanoid (60.84%) and fatty aldehyde (14.57%) compounds, and it indicates higher quality of suitable substrate for earthworm reproduction. In the T2 treatment (50% sugarcane bagasse + 50% elephant dung), observed maximum percentage of fatty alcohol (5.4%) and fatty acid methyl ester (12.88%) compounds due to these dietary fatty acids, which enhanced the sperm production and also have a good impact on earthworm reproduction. Polyunsaturated and saturated fatty acids 23.39% are found in T1 treatment (50% sugarcane bagasse + 50% cow dung), and due to the presence of cow dung, it undergoes higher degree of saturation in the absorbed fatty acids. Different fatty acid compositions observed in seminal vesicle of treated earthworms and its combined mixture of both ruminant and monogastric animal dung were metabolized in the earthworm system and stored as fatty acids in the earthworm sperm cells due to the various substrates as a food source. Hence, based on the present finding, we found that the reproductive rate was higher in T3 treatment, followed by T2 and T1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights Starch‐based biocomposites exhibit great potential as an alternative to fossil‐based materials. This work focused on investigating the properties of the starch‐based biocomposite reinforced by cellulose nanofibers derived from sugarcane bagasse (SCB). The sodium hydroxide (NaOH) concentration was varied from 4%, 8%, and 12% wt/vol for the SCB extraction process. The obtained nanofibers, respectively called SCBNF4, SCBNF8, and SCBNF12, were characterized by various techniques prior to being incorporated into modified starch (MS). The effects of the type and amount of SCBNF on the mechanical properties, thermal behavior, optical transparency, and moisture absorption of the biocomposite films were examined. All SCBNF samples had a cellulose type I structure with a diameter on the nanometer scale, regardless of the NaOH concentration. The SCBNF's diameter decreased, whereas the crystallinity index increased with increasing NaOH concentration. When incorporated into MS, the higher SCBNF loading resulted in enhancements of mechanical properties and resistance to moisture absorption with the sacrifice of optical transparency. The biocomposite filled with SCBNF12 exhibited better overall performance at a certain filler loading due to the greater filler‐polymer interaction. The benefits of greater strength, light weight, and eco‐friendliness of the developed biocomposites make them suitable for many applications, including packaging. Diameter and crystallinity index of SCBNF were governed by NaOH concentration. Adding SCBNF to MS greatly improved the biocomposite's mechanical properties. SCBNF12 showed the highest biocomposite's overall performance. The maximum strength was achieved at 1 phr of SCBNFs. The addition of SCBNFs reduced water and moisture absorption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bio-energy systems with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) will be essential if countries are to meet the gas emission reduction targets established in the 2015 Paris Agreement. This study seeks to carry out a thermodynamic optimization and analysis of a BECCS technology for a typical Brazilian cogeneration plant. To maximize generated net electrical energy (MWe) and carbon dioxide CO2 capture (Mt/year), this study evaluated six cogeneration systems integrated with a chemical absorption process using MEA. A key performance indicator (gCO2/kWh) was also evaluated. The set of optimal solutions shows that the single regenerator configuration (REG1) resulted in more CO2 capture (51.9% of all CO2 emissions generated by the plant), penalized by 14.9% in the electrical plant's efficiency. On the other hand, the reheated configuration with three regenerators (Reheat3) was less power-penalized (7.41%) but had a lower CO2 capture rate (36.3%). Results showed that if the CO2 capture rates would be higher than 51.9%, the cogeneration system would reach a higher specific emission (gCO2/kWh) than the cogeneration base plant without a carbon capture system, which implies that low capture rates (<51%) in the CCS system guarantee an overall net reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in sugarcane plants for power and ethanol production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrogen is a well-known clean energy carrier with a high energetic yield. Its versatility allows it to be produced in diverse ways, including biologically. Specifically, dark fermentation takes advantage of organic wastes, such as agro-industrial residues, to obtain hydrogen. One of these harmful wastes that is poorly discharged into streams is sugarcane bagasse pentose liquor (SBPL). The present study aimed to investigate hydrogen generation from SBPL fermentation in batch reactors by applying different food/microorganism (2–10 F/M) and carbon/nitrogen (10–200 C/N) ratios under mesophilic and thermophilic conditions. Biohydrogen was produced in all pentose liquor experiments along with other soluble microbial products (SMPs): volatile fatty acids (VFAs) (at least 1.38 g L−1 and 1.84 g L−1 by the average of C/N and F/M conditions, respectively) and alcohols (at least 0.67 g L−1 and 0.325 g L−1 by the average of C/N and F/M conditions, respectively). Thermophilic pentose liquor reactors (t-PLRs) showed the highest H2 production (H2 maximum: 1.9 ± 0.06 L in 100 C/N) and hydrogen yield (HY) (1.9 ± 0.54 moles of H2 moles of substrate−1 in 2 F/M) when compared to mesophilic ones (m-PLRs). The main VFA produced was acetate (>0.85 g L−1, considering the average of both nutritional conditions), especially through the butyrate pathway, which was the most common metabolic route of experimental essays. Considering the level of acid dilution used in the pretreatment of bagasse (H2SO4 (1%), 1.1 atm, 120 °C, 60 min), it is unlikely that toxic compounds such as furan derivatives, phenol-like substances (neither was measured), and acetate (<1.0 g L−1) hinder the H2 production in the pentose liquor reactors (PLRs). Sugarcane bagasse pentose liquor fermentation may become a suitable gateway to convert a highly polluting waste into a renewable feedstock through valuable hydrogen production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contamination with traces of pharmaceutical compounds, such as ciprofloxacin, has prompted interest in their removal via low-cost, efficient biomass-based adsorption. In this study, classical models, a mechanistic model, and a neural network model were evaluated for predicting ciprofloxacin breakthrough curves in both laboratory- and pilot scales. For the laboratory-scale (d = 2.2 cm, Co = 5 mg/L, Q = 7 mL/min, T = 18 °C) and pilot-scale (D = 4.4 cm, Co = 5 mg/L, Q = 28 mL/min, T = 18 °C) setups, the experimental adsorption capacities were 2.19 and 2.53 mg/g, respectively. The mechanistic model reproduced the breakthrough data with high accuracy on both scales (R2 > 0.4 and X2 < 0.15), and its fit was higher than conventional analytical models, namely the Clark, Modified Dose–Response, and Bohart-Adams models. The neural network model showed the highest level of agreement between predicted and experimental data with values of R2 = 0.993, X2 = 0.0032 (pilot-scale) and R2 = 0.986, X2 = 0.0022 (laboratory-scale). This study demonstrates that machine learning algorithms exhibit great potential for predicting the liquid adsorption of emerging pollutants in fixed bed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (P(3HB)) is an attractive biodegradable plastic alternative to petroleum-based plastic. However, the cost of microbial-based bioplastic production mainly lies in the cultivation medium. In this study, we screened the isolates capable of synthesizing P(3HB) using sugarcane bagasse (SCB) waste as a carbon source from 79 Bacillus isolates that had previously shown P(3HB) production using a commercial medium. The results revealed that isolate S356, identified as Bacillus cereus using 16S rDNA and gyrB gene analysis, had the highest P(3HB) accumulation. The highest P(3HB) yield (5.16 g/L, 85.3% of dry cell weight) was achieved by cultivating B. cereus S356 in an optimal medium with 1.5% total reducing sugar with SCB hydrolysate as the carbon source and 0.25% yeast extract as the nitrogen source. Transmission electron microscopy analysis showed the accumulation of approximately 3–5 P(3HB) granules in each B. cereus S356 cell. Proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analyses confirmed that the polymer extracted from B. cereus S356 was P(3HB). Notably, during cultivation for P(3HB) plastic production, B. cereus S356 also secreted bacteriocin, which had high antibacterial activity against the same species (Bacillus cereus). Overall, this work demonstrated the possibility of co-producing eco-friendly biodegradable plastic P(3HB) and bacteriocin from renewable resources using the potential of B. cereus S356. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The production of high-value commodities from sugarcane bagasse and harvest residues could be integrated into existing sugarcane mills to create sugarcane biorefineries. Three distinctly different domains of operating conditions were optimised for autocatalyzed steam pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis of these lignocelluloses, to provide sugars according to biorefinery priorities, i.e. (i) maximum digestibility of the solids for glucose only, (ii) maximum hemicellulose recovery in the prehydrolysate for xylose only, or (iii) maximum combined sugar yield (CSY; glucose plus xylose). Bagasse pretreatment showed isolated optima for each response at (i) 215 °C, 15 min; (ii) 202.2 °C, 5 min; and (iii) 215 °C, 5 min. For the harvest residues, the three domains of optimum conditions overlapped within temperatures of 198 and 200 °C, and times of 8 and 12°min, allowing for a single pretreatment condition that meets all three criteria. The practicality and robustness of the preferred pretreatment conditions were demonstrated with a mixed stream of both feedstocks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, jackfruit peel (JP) was blended into sugarcane bagasse (SB) powder during co-hydrothermal carbonization (Co-HTC) to improve the physicochemical properties of JP/SB@4:1 hydrochar for the removal of methylene blue (MB), malachite green (MG), and crystal violet (CV) dyes from aqueous solutions. JP/SB@4:1 was systematically characterized. Spectroscopic, morphological, and elemental analyses confirmed successful binding of MB, CV, and MG dyes with JP/SB@4:1 surface. Influence of various parameters such as contact time, pH, initial dyes concentration, and temperature on the adsorption process was studied. The optimized magnitudes for these parameters were found to be 480 min of contact time; pH 6.6 for MB, 7.6 for MG, and 8.3 for CV; and 328K of temperature. Non-linear kinetic and isotherm models were applied to the experimental data. Results revealed the fitting of pseudo-second-order (PSO) and Langmuir isotherm (LIM) models to experimental data, while the maximum monolayer adsorption capacities (qm) of JP/SB@4:1 toward MB, CV, and MG were 326.79, 300.87, and 922.29 mg/g, respectively. The adsorption of dyes on JP/SB@4:1 was ascribed to electrostatic interaction, hydrogen bonding, and π-π/n-π interactions. Thermodynamics evaluation showed the feasible, spontaneous, and endothermic adsorption of the dyes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To boost the enzymatic hydrolysis of CuCl2-catalyzed organosolv pretreated sugarcane bagasse, the single and composite additives were introduced to decrease the negative influence of residual lignin. By adding the optimal loadings of composite additives (e.g., 30 mg Tween 80, 40 mg tea saponin, 40 mg bovine serum albumin (BSA), and 0.8 mg xylanase based on per g substrate), the highest glucose yield reached 96.5% after hydrolysis for 48 h. Furthermore, the composite additives were introduced to high-solids enzymatic hydrolysis, and the partial supplement of the pretreated substrate and enzyme increased the highest glucose concentration to 194.3 g/L (including 10.8 g/L oligomer glucose), accounting for 88.8% of total fermentable sugars (218.9 g/L). This fed-batch mode along with the composite additives provided a beneficial approach for high-solids enzymatic hydrolysis, the high proportion of glucose was also convenient for commercial bioethanol production using industrial bacterial strains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of industrial process in line with the circular economy and the environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) is the foundation for sustainable economic development. Alternatives that make feasible the transformation of residues in added value products are promising and contribute to the repositioning of the industry towards sustainability, due to financial leverage obtained from lesser operational costs when compared with conventional processes, therefore increasing the company competitivity. In this study, it is presented a promising and innovative technology for the recycling of agro-industrial residues, the sugarcane bagasse and the high-pressure water boiler effluent, in the development of a low-cost adsorbent (HC-T) using the hydrothermal carbonization processes and its application in the adsorption of herbicide Diuron and Methylene Blue dye from synthetic contaminated water. The hydrothermal carbonization was performed in a Teflon contained inside a sealed stainless-steel reactor self-pressurized at 200°C, biomass-to-effluent (m/v) ratio of 1:3 and 24 h. The synthesized material (HC) was activated in an oven at 450°C for 10 min, thus being named adsorbent (HC-T) and characterized by textural, structural and spectroscopic analyses. The low-cost adsorbent HC-T presented an 11-time-fold increase in surface area and ∼40% increase in total pore volume in comparison with the HC material. The kinetic and isotherm adsorption experiment results highlighted that the HC-T was effective as a low-cost adsorbent for the removal of herbicide Diuron and Methylene Blue dye from synthetic contaminated waters, with an adsorption capacity of 35.07 (63.25% removal) and 307.09 mg g−1 (36,47% removal), respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was carried out to investigate the continuous aqueous pretreatment of sugarcane bagasse (SCB) through twin-screw extrusion for a new integrated full valorization, where the solid residue (extrudate) was used for the production of bio-based materials by thermocompression and the filtrate for the production of high-value-added molecules. Two configurations, with and without a filtration module, were tested and the influence of the SCB composition and structure on the properties of the materials were determined. The impact of the liquid-to-solid (L/S) ratio was studied (0.65-6.00) in relation to the material properties and the biomolecule extraction yield in the filtrate (with the filtration configuration). An L/S ratio of at least 1.25 was required to obtain a liquid filtrate, and increasing the L/S ratio to 2 increased the extraction yield to 11.5 g/kg of the inlet SCB. The extrudate obtained without filtration yielded materials with properties equivalent to those obtained with filtration for L/S ratios of at least 1.25. Since the molecule extraction process was limited, a configuration without filtration would make it possible to reduce water consumption in the process while obtaining high material properties. Under the filtration configuration, an L/S ratio of 2 was the best tradeoff between water consumption, extraction yield, and the material properties, which included 1485 kg/m3 density, 6.2 GPa flexural modulus, 51.2 MPa flexural strength, and a water absorption (WA) and thickness swelling (TS) of 37% and 44%, respectively, after 24 h of water immersion. The aqueous pretreatment by twin-screw extrusion allowed for the overall valorization of SCB, resulting in materials with significantly improved properties compared to those obtained with raw SCB due to fiber deconstruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The disposal of industrial effluents containing cadmium and copper ions is a significant environmental concern. This study aims to address this issue by evaluating the adsorption capacity of adsorbents derived from residual biomass from second-generation ethanol production. The objective is to effectively remove cadmium and copper ions from aqueous solutions. The biochar utilized in the study was characterized as microporous and exhibited characteristic bands associated with carboxyls and hydroxyls. The pHPZC (point of zero charge) was determined to be 8.0. The kinetic study revealed that the PSO (pseudo-second-order) model provided the best fit, indicating that the adsorption rate depends on the amount of solute adsorbed onto the adsorbent's surface. In the equilibrium study, it was observed that adsorption occurred in a monolayer, as evidenced by the superior fit of the Langmuir model. Furthermore, the equilibrium experimental data for the bicomponent system was more accurately represented by the empirical models of Extended Freundlich and Modified Redlich-Peterson. These findings demonstrate the potential of biochar derived from the residue of second-generation ethanol production, a novel application, in effectively removing cadmium and copper ions from aqueous solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Xylan is the most abundant constituent of hemicellulose fraction of lignocellulosic biomass. Short xylooligosaccharides (XOS), obtained via xylan hydrolysis, have well-known prebiotic and antioxidant properties that are beneficial for human and animal health. In this study, two alternative pretreatment strategies (alkali and hydrothermal) and three different enzymes were applied for enzymatic XOS production from sugarcane bagasse. The enzymatic hydrolysis was performed with nine different combinations of recombinant endo-xylanases from GH11 and GH10 families and GH11 xylobiohydrolase. Hydrothermal pretreatment followed by optimized enzymatic hydrolysis yielded up to 96 ± 1 mg of XOS per gram of initial biomass, whereas enzymatic hydrolysis of alkali-pretreated sugarcane bagasse rendered around 47.6 ± 0.2 mg/g. For both alkali and hydrothermal routes, the maximum yields of short-length XOS were obtained using the GH10 xylanase alone. Furthermore, differences in XOS profiles obtained by controlled mixtures of the enzymes have been evaluated. For both routes, the best yields of short-length XOS were obtained using the GH10 xylanase alone, which is consistent with the notion that sugarcane xylan substitutions partially hinder GH11 xylanase activity. The results presented here show that a green and cost-effective hydrothermal pretreatment path for xylooligosaccharides production, rendered considerably better XOS yields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to explore the potential of producing eco-bricks from alternative raw materials, namely sugarcane bagasse and shells. The use of sugarcane bagasse and shells as basic materials for brick production promises an innovative solution to reduce environmental impact and utilize agricultural waste that is often overlooked. The research methodology involves stages of raw material collection, brick development processes, and analysis of the physical properties and strength of the resulting products. The process of making eco-bricks from sugarcane bagasse and shells will be evaluated based on structural strength and other physical properties. The results of this study show new insights into the development of environmentally friendly and quality brick production technology. Additionally, a deeper understanding of the economic aspects of sugarcane bagasse production could serve as a foundation to motivate industry players to adopt sustainable construction methods in their production activities. Therefore, this research has the potential to make a positive contribution to agricultural waste management and the development of a more robust sustainable construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Impregnation of potassium can enhance thermal decomposition and thermal reactions of biomass. In this study, the addition of potassium to biomass using potassium carbonate (K2CO3) was investigated to better understand the effects of solution concentration and impregnation time on the pretreatment process of as-received (macro-scale) sugarcane bagasse (SCB). The morphology and thermal degradation of SCB were characterized by FTIR, XRD, and TGA. Following that, the optimal condition was determined by using response surface methodology (RSM). As a result, K2CO3 significantly disorders the cellulose structure and the thermal decomposition temperature of impregnated SCB which is lower than the untreated bagasse in the difference of 25–57 °C. In addition, K2CO3 has a significant impact on char formation, which results in increased char yield. In summary, the RSM results suggest that the appropriate condition for K2CO3 pretreatment is at the solution concentration of 0.25 M and impregnation time of 60 min, resulting in the lowest crystallinity index (59.88%) with an acceptable value of activation energy (77.98 kJ/mol). Furthermore, it is recommended that K2CO3 pretreatment condition is required to apply for SCB before undergoing the torrefaction process, which could practically improve the torrefaction of SCB for a biomass power plant application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hemicellulose-derived sugars, especially xylose and xylooligosaccharide (XOS), obtained from lignocellulosic biomass can promote further applications in alternative chemical, food, and health care industries. In this study, a hemicellulose-rich hydrolysate was extracted by the hydrothermal pretreatment of sugarcane bagasse at 175 °C. The two-step combination process of activated carbon and macroporous adsorption resin demonstrated a high efficiency of removal in terms of total byproducts (hydroxymethylfurfural, furfural, lactic acid, formic acid, acetic acid, levulinic acid, and succinic acid) and phenolic content with 70.9% and 92.0%, respectively. This synergistic process achieved a higher purity of total sugar (89.7%) than the single detoxification processes with activated carbon and macroporous resin (83.6% and 84.3%, respectively). Moreover, detoxification by activated carbon achieved the removal of the total byproducts in the range of 47.1 to 63.9%, particularly the removal of hydroxymethylfurfural and furfural under the condition from 5 to 10% (w/v) activated carbon loading and temperature at 4–70 °C for 4 h. Using macroporous adsorption resin affected the removal of the total phenolic content in the range of 68.3 to 98.4% with high loss of XOS sugar under conditions from 2 to 20% (w/v) resin loading at 25 °C for 1 h. This work provides a simple process for the detoxification of hemicellulose-rich hydrolysates by adsorbent materials from hydrothermal sugarcane bagasse processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Β-Carotene is a red–orange pigment that serves as a precursor to important pharmaceutical molecules like vitamin A and retinol, making it highly significant in the industrial sector. Consequently, there is an ongoing quest for more sustainable production methods. In this study, glucose and xylose, two primary sugars derived from sugarcane bagasse (SCB), were utilized as substrates for β-carotene production by Rhodotorula glutinis CCT-2186. To achieve this, SCB underwent pretreatment using NaOH, involved different concentrations of total solids (TS) (10%, 15%, and 20%) to remove lignin. Each sample was enzymatically hydrolyzed using two substrate loadings (5% and 10%). The pretreated SCB with 10%, 15%, and 20% TS exhibited glucose hydrolysis yields (%wt) of 93.10%, 91.88%, and 90.77%, respectively. The resulting hydrolysate was employed for β-carotene production under batch fermentation. After 72 h of fermentation, the SCB hydrolysate yielded a β-carotene concentration of 118.56 ± 3.01 mg/L. These findings showcase the robustness of R. glutinis as a biocatalyst for converting SCB into β-carotene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrothermal co-liquefaction (co-HTL) is a process involving two sources of biomasses aiming at bio-crude production. Since there is a lack of studies performed with sugarcane bagasse and residual soybean oil, this study investigated different conditions for the co-HTL of these biomasses, with and without the presence of ethanol as a co-solvent to maximize the bio-crude yield. All co-HTL reactions were carried out in a 300 mL Parr® reactor at temperatures ranging from 200 to 300 °C. After the reaction, a vacuum filtration was performed to separate the bio-char, later washed with ethanol to extract heavy bio-crude, while the liquid-phase was mixed with dichloromethane to recover light bio-crude. Bio-crude yields of around 95 wt.% were obtained at 300 °C using ethanol and water as solvents. The highest bio-char yield (16.6 wt.%) was achieved when using only sugarcane bagasse as the substrate, without the presence of soybean oil. Bio-crude samples obtained at higher temperatures (280 °C and 300 °C) using ethanol as a hydrogen donor presented higher contents of both free fatty acids and fatty acid ethyl esters. This work presents a promising process to produce high-quality bio-crude using an abundant feedstock (sugarcane bagasse) in the presence of a lipid source which could cause environmental problems if poorly handled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The seafood processing industries are tremendously increasing in numbers which eventually discharge a large quantity of wastewater with a high range of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (COD), directly into the aquatic environment. A high level of BOD and COD in wastewater pertains to a higher level of pollution which must be reduced to prevent hazardous impacts on ecosystems. The main objective of the research aimed to develop cost‐effective biochar and to remove BOD and COD from processing wastewater using two natural biomasses: water hyacinth and sugarcane bagasse. RESULTS: NaOH‐treated and non‐treated biochar for both water hyacinth as well as sugarcane bagasse were prepared through the process of pyrolysis carried out at 600 °C with three different residence times of 30, 45 and 60 min. The wastewater was initially analyzed for BOD and COD levels. The results showed that among all the groups of biochars, the water hyacinth NaOH‐treated biochar pyrolyzed at 600 °C for 60 min exhibited significantly (P < 0.05) higher levels of reduction in BOD (86.6 ± 0.03%) and COD (94.3 ± 0.05%) at a residence time of 60 min in D2 (0.5 g (250 mL)−1). The maximum removal efficiency was observed for water hyacinth NaOH‐treated biochar pyrolyzed at 600 °C for 60 min. CONCLUSION: The removal efficiencies of organic load revealed that the treated biochars exhibited a better reduction of nutrients. The biochar efficiencies when compared with those of activated carbon exhibited a higher removal level. The present research can be used to reduce BOD and COD levels in wastewater treatments. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry (SCI). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract In this research, we reported the synthesis of effective sulphonated sugarcane bagasse (SCB@SA) biosorbent based on agriculture waste materials via a simple diazotization strategy for the removal of methylene blue (MB) and Bismarck Brown R(BB) dyes from waste water samples. First, the sugarcane bagasse (SCB) waste was collected, grinded, and sieved to obtain the desired size. Secondly, the SCB powder is modified with sulfanilinic acid (SA) via the formation of its diazonium salt to introduce sulfonic groups on the SCB surface. Different advanced techniques were applied to characterize the prepared materials before and after the adsorption process viz. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Different parameters affecting the adsorption process of both MB and BB were studied. Because of the higher correlation coefficient (R2 ≥ 0.999) and lower error functions, the equilibrium MB and BB adsorption isotherms for a single-dye system fit Langmuir with maximum adsorption capacity reaching to 127.48 and 166.75 mg/g for MB and BB, respectively. Moreover, the RL values obtained for both dyes lie between 0 and 1, indicating that MB and BB adsorption by SCB@SA is a favorable process. Besides, the error functions’ values of the pseudo-2nd-order are significantly lower than those of the pseudo-1st-order, implying that the adsorption MB and BB onto SCB@SA biosorbent fitted the pseudo-2nd-order kinetic model in a chemosorption manner. In the thermodynamic studies, the adsorption process is spontaneous, exothermic, and has less randomness. In addition, the SCB@SA biosorbent could be reused in five cycles maintaining on suitable adsorption efficiency. Finally, the MB and BB dyes could be adsorbed on the SCB@SA biosorbent via three mechanisms including π-π stacking, columbic attraction, and hydrogen bonding.

The experimental study of the physicochemical properties of biodegradable composite of sugarcane bagasse-polyester have been investigated. Natural composite materials having biodegradable property which makes them a material with limited lifespan, thereby there is a need to research on these materials beyond their normal scope before their lifespan for solid material applications as current technological concepts advances. In this research, water absorption, specific gravity, and chemical resistance test were conducted on sugarcane bagasse polyester composite of different specimen, using a laboratory beaker filled with distilled water, HCl, NaOH, H2O2, NaOCl and detergent solution, at a particular time observing a suitable ASTM. From the result obtained, specimen with 25 weights % increase in Sugarcane bagasse fibre loading, indicated water absorption value of 1.42 %, which could be acceptable for good resistance to water material. The chemical resistance test, severity of the attack and effect on the appearance and weight of the composites followed the order: 10% HCl > 10% NaOH solutions, the deteriorating effect of the composites showed to be unaffected by neither the amount of filler weight nor the presence of any additive incorporated in the SCB-PES composites.

Local agro-industrial wastes-based particleboards and fiberboards in Egypt are manufactured mainly from sugarcane-bagasse and flax shives. These panels are used in decorations and interior claddings. This paper aimed to broaden their market to be utilized in local low-cost and simple building envelope retrofitting packages instead of conventional packages that depend on imported expanded polystyrene and wet-rendered gypsum boards. Thermal conductivities of various existing sugarcane-bagasse and flax-shives-based panels were measured to be used in developing multilayered interior claddings with adequate thermal insulating performance to increase the thermal mass of a validated non-insulated case-study residential building as recommended by the Egyptian Code for Energy Efficiency of Residential Buildings. Models retrofitted using the developed cladding assemblies were simulated using Design Builder to determine their achieved annual energy savings and predict their profitability. Thermal conductivities of sugarcane-bagasse and flax-shives-based particleboards were lower than wood-based cladding panels, with the range of 0.05–0.1166 W/mK. Moreover, the thermal conductivities of sugarcane-bagasse fiberboard had the range of 0.0926–01,111 W/mK which is significantly lower than wood-based fiberboards. Simulation results showed that both models retrofitted, sugarcane bagasse-based and flax shives-based, achieved better energy savings, 5.07% and 5.04%, than the conventionally retrofitted model, 3.73%. Furthermore, the flax-shives-based model showed higher profitability, with positive income achieved in the 15th year, than a conventionally retrofitted model, achieved in the 20th year, and the sugarcane-bagasse-based model, achieved in the 19th year. Thus, it was recommended that although flax-shives-based wall claddings were usually 14–20% thicker than sugarcane-bagasse-based claddings, they provided similarly high annual energy savings with lower initial costs and higher profitability.

This research involves the blending of readily accessible waste materials, namely diaper cellulose (DC) and sugarcane bagasse (SB), for a comprehensive thermodynamic and kinetic analysis during co-pyrolysis. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) has been conducted to undertake a co-pyrolysis investigation across different ratios of DC and SB. The analysis covered a temperature sequence of 20°C–800°C with varying heat flow rates of 10°C/min, 20°C/min, and 30°C/min. For activation energy determination, the Kissinger–Akahira–Sunose (KAS) and Ozawa–Flynn–Wall (OFW) methods were employed. The average activation energy, calculated using the OFW and KAS methods, was found to have values in the range of 209.46 and 226.109 kJ/mol for DC, 139.08 and 157.41 kJ/mol for 50DC-50SB, and 102.19 and 109.758 kJ/mol for SB, respectively. The activation energy data of the mixtures were shown to be decreasing from the pristine DC. Notably, the mixture exhibited a lower activation energy, indicating a positive synergistic effect resulting from co-pyrolysis. Thermodynamic parameters such as ΔH, ΔS, and ΔG for the mixture were also evaluated. The Gibbs free energy (ΔG) across samples varied between 288.71 and 123.05 kJ/mol for pure DC, DC-SB mixtures, and pure SB, demonstrating a notable influence on co-pyrolysis. The observed decrease in energy levels in the mixture suggests that the combination of sugarcane bagasse with diaper cellulose results in a reduced energy demand. Practical Applications: The activation energy, determined through thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), delivers valuable insights into the thermal decomposition behavior of materials. The TGA data help in illustrating the thermal constancy of materials, allowing researchers to assess the suitability of substances for specific applications. In industries such as pharmaceuticals, polymers, and chemicals, TGA with activation energy determination can be employed for quality control purposes. The calculated thermodynamic data are crucial in designing and optimizing pyrolysis and gasification processes. They aid in predicting the rate of thermal decomposition, optimizing reaction conditions, and improving the efficiency of these processes for bioenergy production or waste treatment. TGA with activation energy analysis is extensively used in the polymer industry. It assists in understanding the degradation kinetics of polymers, enabling the development of heat-resistant materials for specific applications. Also, these values are essential in catalyst design for chemical reactions. They guide the selection and optimization of catalysts for various processes, ensuring efficient and economical chemical transformations. Determining the activation energy of fuels provides critical information for combustion processes. This is useful in optimizing combustion conditions for energy production, as well as in assessing the stability and safety of fuel storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Local agro-industrial wastes-based particleboards and fiberboards in Egypt are manufactured mainly from sugarcane-bagasse and flax shives. These panels are used in decorations and interior claddings. This paper aimed to broaden their market to be utilized in local low-cost and simple building envelope retrofitting packages instead of conventional packages that depend on imported expanded polystyrene and wet-rendered gypsum boards. Thermal conductivities of various existing sugarcane-bagasse and flax-shives-based panels were measured to be used in developing multilayered interior claddings with adequate thermal insulating performance to increase the thermal mass of a validated non-insulated case-study residential building as recommended by the Egyptian Code for Energy Efficiency of Residential Buildings. Models retrofitted using the developed cladding assemblies were simulated using Design Builder to determine their achieved annual energy savings and predict their profitability. Thermal conductivities of sugarcane-bagasse and flax-shives-based particleboards were lower than wood-based cladding panels, with the range of 0.05-0.1166 W/mK. Moreover, the thermal conductivities of sugarcane-bagasse fiberboard had the range of 0.0926-01,111 W/mK which is significantly lower than wood-based fiberboards. Simulation results showed that both models retrofitted, sugarcane bagasse-based and flax shives-based, achieved better energy savings, 5.07% and 5.04%, than the conventionally retrofitted model, 3.73%. Furthermore, the flax-shives-based model showed higher profitability, with positive income achieved in the 15th year, than a conventionally retrofitted model, achieved in the 20th year, and the sugarcane-bagasse-based model, achieved in the 19th year. Thus, it was recommended that although flax-shives-based wall claddings were usually 14-20% thicker than sugarcane-bagasse-based claddings, they provided similarly high annual energy savings with lower initial costs and higher profitability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The antibacterial characteristics of graphene oxide (GO-SB) nano-sheets generated by charring sugarcane bagasse (SB) are described in this study. The antibacterial capability of GO-SB was improved when it was grafted with ethyl cellulose (EC) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) to form GO-SB/EC/PVA hydrogels. Characterization of GO-SB nanosheets and GO-SB/EC/PVA hydrogels was accomplished by using FTIR, SEM, XRD, and thermal studies. The antimicrobial activity was carried out against Gram positive bacteria [Micrococcus leutus & Staphylococcus aureus], Gram negative bacteria [Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa] and pathogenic fungal yeast [Candida albicans] applying the disc diffusion method. The disc diffusion method results showed that the improved GO-SB/EC/PVA exhibited a reasonable level of antimicrobial capability against Micrococcus leutus, demonstrating that the antimicrobial improvement of GO-SB was more effective in the GO-SB/EC/PVA hydrogels by increasing the inhibition zone of Gram-positive bacteria, Micrococcus leutus from (13.0 to 16.0 mm). Graphical abstract

Sugarcane has primarily been used for sugar and ethanol production. It creates large quantities of residual lignocellulosic biomass such as sugarcane bagasse, leaves, tops, and vinasse. Biomass is a sustainable prospect for biorefineries aiming to optimize production processes. We detail recent research developments in recycling sugarcane, including energy generation and pyrolysis to obtain biofuels, for example. To produce biochar, the energy cost of operating at high temperatures and large-scale production remain as obstacles. The energy generation prospects can be enhanced by pellet production; however, it requires an improvement in quality control for long-term storage or long-distance transportation. In civil construction, the materials still need to prove their long-term efficiency and reliability. Related to adsorbent materials, the use of sugarcane bagasse has the advantage of being low-cost and environmentally friendly. Nevertheless, the extraction, functionalization, and modification of cellulose fibers, to improve their adsorption properties or even mode of operation, still challenges. The synthesis of nanostructures is still lacking high yields and the ability to scale up. Finally, controlling dispersion and orientation and avoiding fiber agglomeration could improve the mechanical response of composites using sugarcane bagasse. The different possibilities for using sugarcane and its residues reinforce the importance of this material for the industry and the global economy. Thus, the present work addresses current challenges and perspectives of different industrial processes involving sugarcane aiming to support future research on waste-derived subjects.

In this study, the separation of lignin from a mild alkaline sugarcane bagasse extract was studied, and the impacts of different parameters on the filtration performance were evaluated. The tested parameters included transmembrane pressure (0.5–3.0 bar), shear rates (2831–22,696 s−1), temperature (20 and 40 °C), membrane molecular weight cut-off (5 and 10 kDa), and membrane material (polyethersulfone and polysulfone). During the filtration process, the permeate flux and all the main components of the extract were analyzed, including lignins (acid insoluble lignin and acid soluble lignin), sugars (xylose, arabinose, glucose, and galactose), total phenolic compounds, and phenolic acids (p-coumaric acid, ferulic acid, vanillin, and 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde). It was proved that the tested conditions had a great impact on the permeate flux and molecule retention rate. Increasing the temperature from 20 to 40 °C resulted in a much higher permeate flux for the 5 kDa PES membrane, and the impact of shear rate was greater at 40 °C for this membrane. Although the 5 kDa PES membrane could retain slightly more large molecules, i.e., acid-insoluble lignin and xylose, the 10 kDa membrane afforded greater phenolic acid removal capacity, leading to higher purity. For the 10 kDa PS membrane, the polarization layer began to form at TMP below 0.5 bar. This membrane had a lower retention rate for all molecules than the 10 kDa PES membrane.

This study was carried out to assess the fuel pellets produced from wheat straw and sugarcane bagasse. The wheat straw and bagasse were blended into four ratios including; 10:90, 30:70, 70:30 and 90:10 (wheat straw: bagasse) and developed into fuel pellets. The fuel pellets were characterized to determine the moisture content, volatile matter, fixed carbon, ash content, calorific value, bulk density and mechanical durability. The ignition time, burning rate and specific fuel consumption of the wheat straw – bagasse blended fuel pellets were studied at varying blend ratios (10:90, 30:70, 70:30 and 90:10), moisture contents (9.1%, 10.6%, 12.6% and 14.7%) and raw material particle sizes (2 mm, 4 mm, 6 mm and 10 mm). Results indicated that the wheat straw: bagasse blend ratios containing more proportion of bagasse (30:70 and 10:90) recorded a shorter ignition time, higher burning rate and lower specific fuel consumption. Larger raw material particle sizes exhibited shorter ignition time, higher burning rate and specific fuel consumption. Moreso, the fuel pellets with low moisture contents also recorded shorter ignition time, higher burning rate and lower specific fuel consumption. It was concluded that fuel pellets with high quantity of bagasse, large particle sizes and low moisture content demonstrated favorable combustion characteristics. Response surface methodology was used in the optimization so as to determine the optimum combination of blending ratio, moisture content and raw material particle size that would result in the lowest ignition time, highest burning rate and lowest specific fuel consumption. Results indicated that an optimum combination of a wheat straw: bagasse blend ratio of 10:90, moisture content of 14.70% and a particle size of 10.00 mm resulted in the lowest ignition time, highest burning rate and lowest specific fuel consumption.

Sago starch and cellulose fiber can be used as a raw material for making degradable plastics to replace commercial plastics. This research used corn cob fiber and sugarcane bagasse fiber as filler to improve the properties of degradable plastic. The research method consists of several stages, cellulose fiber preparation, degradable plastic synthesis and plastic characterization. The result showed tensile strength of plastic with corn cob and sugarcane bagasse filler was 6.37–11.5 MPa and 9.70–16.47 MPa, respectively. The compound composition test through Fourier Transformation Infra-Red (FTIR) exhibited hydrophilic behavior, hence plastic easily degraded by soil. Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) shows that degradable plastic with corn cob fiber filler denoted a melting point of 163.84 ℃, while sugarcane bagasse fiber filler at 163.47 ℃. Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) analysis indicated degradable plastic had a good thermal stability. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) exhibited few white lumps and indentations on the surface, indicating that the solubility was not homogeny and could be due to the influence of stirring process. In term of ability to absorb water, both plastic with fiber filler had a small water absorption with a range of 5–6%. Melt Flow Rate (MFR) analysis of degradable plastics with corn cob fiber and sugarcane bagasse pointed the value that was suitable for injection molding processing technique. The degradation of both plastics ranged about 50–85 days to completely decomposed naturally in soil, as supported by FTIR analysis.

Introduction Irrigation water salinity is a very serious problem in different parts of the world, especially in arid and semi-arid regions. Increasing fresh-water demand due to population growth causes the pressure on water resources to increase in the future causing the water supply through saline and unconventional water to become a serious issue, especially in areas facing water scarcity. On the other hand, agriculture is the world's greatest water consumer where saline water reduces the products, destroys the soil structure, and damages the environment. Wastewater desalination and water reuse is a relatively new approach in the water industry that solves saline-water problems through various methods. But it is uneconomical due to high equipment costs and energy consumption, especially in agriculture where water consumption is much higher. To remove pollutants, various studies have used different adsorbents such as biochar, activated carbon, zeolite, and resin among which biochar can effectively remove pollutants from aquatic environments because it is an effective, inexpensive, polar, high-porosity adsorbent. Ion exchange, complex formation, surface adsorption, electron sharing, and biochar (carboxylic and pHenolic) - functional group interaction are among various mechanisms where the presence of negative charge on the biochar surface and positive charge on metal ions improve the adsorption process. As the activated carbon is made from cheap materials as wood, coal, oil, coke, sawdust, and plant waste, it is quite economical and highly capable of removing a wide range of organic and inorganic pollutants from aquatic and gaseous environments. Materials and Methods To prepare biochar, this research used the sugarcane bagasse as primary biomass by 1) washing it several times with ordinary and distilled water and drying it in the open air to remove its remaining salts, 2) crushing it with an industrial mill and placing it in an oven at 60 °C for 24 hrs to remove its excess moisture, 3) grinding the crushed bagasse with a small mill for further milling, 4) passing it through 60 and 100 mesh sieves in two stages for more uniformity and 5) placing it in closed containers. Biomass was converted to biochar (BC) using a heat-programmable electric furnace where the temperature rise was set at five °C/min for a uniform heat distribution. Bagasse was placed inside a steel reactor into which nitrogen gas was injected at a fixed flow rate and prevented oxidation. Biomass was kept at 600 °C for two hrs thereafter the furnace was turned off, while nitrogen gas was injected, and the temperature was slowly lowered to that of the lab. Considering the sizes of the furnace and reactor, each time 20 g biomass was placed in the reactor and about five g biochar was produced after the carbonization process; the biochar production efficiency under these conditions was about 25%. Nano biochar (N-BC) was made by a planetary ball mill with ceramic cups and bullets where the bullet-to-biochar weight ratio was 15-to-one and the rotation speed was 300 rpm. The good mill-activity time was two, four, and six hrs. It worked for three min and rested for one minute to prevent the temperature from rising and cohesive masses from forming in the samples; as size and uniformity of particles were important, use was made of a gradation device. Results and Discussion In all treatments, by increasing the initial Chlorine concentration, the Chlorine removal had an increasing trend. on average, this was, using activated nano biochar 74.4% more than activated non-nano biochar. Magnetizing nano-absorbents reduced the Chlorine removal by 18.8%, on average. The highest and lowest Chlorine removal reductions due to the adsorbent magnetization were 31.6 and 10.9%, respectively. The highest Chlorine removal in all three activated non-nano, activated nano, and magnetically activated nano adsorbents (200 and 400 W treatments) was measured for an activator-to-biochar ratio of three. According to the results, Chlorine adsorption by magnetically activated nano absorbent reached equilibrium after 480 min in the treatment with 200 and 700 W microwave power and after 540 min in treatment with 400 W microwave power. Increasing the initial Chlorine concentration from three to 25 g l-1, increased the Chlorine removal by the magnetically activated nano absorbent by three, 3.5, and 2.6 times in 200, 400, and 700 W microwave power treatments, respectively. Conclusion The pseudo-first-order kinetic model had a good correlation with the data and the pseudo-second-order kinetic model did not correlate well with the data in times less than 60 min; hence, the dominating adsorption mechanism was not chemical in this interval. Intraparticle diffusion was an effective Chlorine-adsorption factor from the beginning of the adsorption process. Considering the correlation coefficient and sum of squared errors, the pseudo-first-order kinetic model and the intraparticle diffusion model had the highest correlation with the measured data. The average correlation coefficient for Langmuir and Freundlich models was found to be 0.9938 and 0.886, respectively. Therefore, the Langmuir isothermal model conformed better to the measured data than the Freundlich model.

This study aimed at a comparative analysis of enzymatic hydrolysis of sugarcane bagasse biomass by using a free holocellulase cocktail of an enzyme (Cellic CTec2) and immobilized enzyme system on IOMNP@SiO2-NH2 support to make the process cost-effective. The immobilization was substantiated by examining the nano biocatalysts using FTIR, TEM, and DLS analysis. IOMNP@SiO2 –NH2 and immobilized enzyme system have average particle sizes of 81.1, and 455.9 nm confirmed by DLS. Response surface methodology (RSM) based on the Box Behnken design was employed to optimize the saccharification process conditions. The free cellulase cocktail showed a maximum hydrolysis yield of 70.71 % at 12.5FPU/gm enzyme dose, while the immobilized enzyme at a dose of 20 FPU/gm achieved a conversion rate of 74.19 % under optimized parameters likes hydrolysis time, surfactant and substrate concentration. Pretreated sugarcane bagasse substrate was used to evaluate the reusability potential of magnetically immobilized cellulase enzyme compared to recovered free enzyme up to 5 cycles. In the second and third cycles, the conversion rates of cellulose to glucose were determined to be 68.21 %, and 52.6 %, respectively. The findings of this study demonstrate that the immobilized Cellic CTec2 enzyme cocktail on functionalized IOMNP is effective for hydrolyzing sugarcane bagasse which also provides the advantages of easy recovery and reusability of enzyme for multiple hydrolysis cycles.

The antibacterial characteristics of graphene oxide (GO-SB) nano-sheets generated by charring sugarcane bagasse (SB) are described in this study. The antibacterial capability of GO-SB was improved when it was grafted with ethyl cellulose (EC) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) to form GO-SB/EC/PVA hydrogels. Characterization of GO-SB nanosheets and GO-SB/EC/PVA hydrogels was accomplished by using FTIR, SEM, XRD, and thermal studies. The antimicrobial activity was carried out against Gram positive bacteria [Micrococcus leutus & Staphylococcus aureus], Gram negative bacteria [Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa] and pathogenic fungal yeast [Candida albicans] applying the disc diffusion method. The disc diffusion method results showed that the improved GO-SB/EC/PVA exhibited a reasonable level of antimicrobial capability against Micrococcus leutus, demonstrating that the antimicrobial improvement of GO-SB was more effective in the GO-SB/EC/PVA hydrogels by increasing the inhibition zone of Gram-positive bacteria, Micrococcus leutus from (13.0 to 16.0 mm). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The toxicity of hemicellulosic hydrolysates is one of the main bottlenecks of the biotechnological production of xylitol, as inhibitors released/generated during plant cell wall deconstruction impair xylitol production. Yeast adaptation can be applied to overcome this issue through the development of tolerant strains, improving microbial performance. Herein, we evaluated Candida tropicalis FTI20037 pre-cultivation in original, concentrated, and concentrated/detoxified sugarcane bagasse and straw hemicellulosic hydrolysate (SBSHH) to reduce hydrolysate's toxicity during concentrated/detoxified SBSHH fermentations. Regarding glucose uptake, there were no differences between the evaluated conditions. In turn, lignocellulosic inhibitors negatively affected xylose uptake. The evaluated adaptive strategies did not improve xylose uptake at SBSHH fermentations. Xylitol production was also impaired by lignocellulosic inhibitors. However, pre-cultivation in concentrated/detoxified SBSHH increased xylitol yield and xylose-to-xylitol bioconversion efficiency by 13.3%, xylitol volumetric productivity by 7.1%, and xylitol specific production rate by 9.7%. A 21.5% reduction in glycerol production was also observed in this condition, indicating an increased tolerance to lignocellulosic inhibitors. Arabinose assimilation started slowly in all fermentations. Increased arabinose uptake rates were observed after xylose depletion, suggesting the existence of a carbon catabolite repression tendency between xylose and arabinose. Pre-cultivation in concentrated/detoxified SBSHH reduced this repression tendency, increasing arabinose consumption. Regarding lignocellulosic inhibitors, 5-HMF degradation was increased by pre-cultivation. No differences were observed for acetic acid and phenolic compounds consumption. The combination of SBSHH detoxification and C. tropicalis pre-cultivation was effective to improve xylitol production possibly due to the development of a more tolerant phenotype against SBSHH toxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mechanism underlying the production of fungal lignocellulolytic enzymes from lignocellulosic biomass remains unclear; therefore, it is imperative to investigate the interactions of microorganisms, culture components, and enzyme production. In this research, four native fungi isolated from agave bagasse: Aspergillus fumigatus (BC-1IB and BDJ-1S), Neurospora sitophila (BDJ-1I), and Rhizopus oryzae (BC-3IDA), were used to evaluate their interaction with lignocellulosic biomass as carbon source (agave or sugarcane bagasse) and pH (6.4 and 7.9) during the production of enzymatic extracts by solid-state fermentation with a packed-bed bioreactor. The evaluated enzymatic activities were pectinolytic, cellulolytic, and xylanolytic. The results demonstrate that the interaction between fungal strain, biomass, and pH during solid-state fermentation has a relevant effect on the final catalytic properties of the resulting enzymatic extract. The interaction between BDJ-1I and agave bagasse results in a pectinase extract that preserves above 99% of its activity at 70 °C for 5 h. Notably, the interaction between N. sitophila BDJ-1I with agave bagasse at pH 6.4 results in extracts with higher pectinase (96.8 IU/gdw), cellulase (39.3 IU/gdw), and xylanase (26.6 IU/gdw) activities suitable for hydrolyzing agro-industrial residues like wheat straw (30.2%), sugarcane (17.4%), and agave bagasse (28.4%). These findings highlight reusing agave and sugarcane bagasse residues for biotransformation into lignocellulosic enzyme cocktails with naturally present fungi strains toward the sustainable zero-waste management of agave and sugarcane bagasse biomass. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nanocellulose contains a large number of hydroxyl groups that can be used to modify its surface due to its structure. Owing to its appealing features, such as high strength, great stiffness, and high surface area, nanocellulose is currently gaining popularity in research and industry. The extraction of nanocellulose from the leftover bagasse fiber from sugarcane production by alkaline and acid treatment was successful in this study, with a production yield of 55.6%. The FTIR and XPS results demonstrated a difference in the functional and chemical composition of untreated sugarcane bagasse and extracted nanocellulose. SEM imaging was used to examined the size of the nanocellulose with ImageJ software v1.8.0. TGA, DTG, and XRD analyses were also performed to demonstrate the successful extraction of nanocellulose in terms of its morphology, thermal stability, and crystal structure before and after extraction. The anti-S. aureus activity of the extracted nanocellulose was discovered by using an OD600 test and a colony counting method, and an inhibitory rate of 53.12% was achieved. According to the results, nanocellulose produced from residual sugarcane bagasse could be employed as an antibacterial agent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The production of multienzymes complex that could act in different raw materials is needed to improve the bioethanol production process. We isolated bacteria from vegetable residues, identified as Bacillus velezensis (UPF-B1 and UPF-B2), which were able to simultaneously produce amylolytic and cellulolytic enzymes. The enzyme complex was produced by submerged fermentation in a media containing whole-grain triticale flour and sugarcane bagasse at pH 5.5 without supplementation with micronutrient solutions, reducing the media's costs. The combined use of raw materials (triticale and sugarcane bagasse) led to higher enzymatic activities, which is important given the need for the availability of raw materials for the industrial operation of enzyme and bioethanol production plants. The enzymes produced by UPF-B1 showed their optimum at pH 5.0–5.5 and 40 ºC, and those produced by UPF-B2 at pH 5.0–5.5 and 30–50 ºC. The multienzyme complex produced by the strain UPF-B2 allows the hydrolysis in mild temperatures, near to those of fermentation processes, avoiding the need for thermophilic yeasts in the fermentation step, being a desirable option to be used in simultaneous saccharification and fermentation processes of bioethanol production. [Display omitted] • This is the first report to identify Bacillus velezensis in fruit residues. • Enzyme complexes were produced by bacteria isolated from horti-fruit residues. • Bacterial enzymes showed industrial potential to act at pH 5.0–5.5 and 30–50 ºC. • Sugarcane bagasse and triticale were substrates as a cost-reduction strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction Irrigation water salinity is a very serious problem in different parts of the world, especially in arid and semi-arid regions. Increasing fresh-water demand due to population growth causes the pressure on water resources to increase in the future causing the water supply through saline and unconventional water to become a serious issue, especially in areas facing water scarcity. On the other hand, agriculture is the world's greatest water consumer where saline water reduces the products, destroys the soil structure, and damages the environment. Wastewater desalination and water reuse is a relatively new approach in the water industry that solves salinewater problems through various methods. But it is uneconomical due to high equipment costs and energy consumption, especially in agriculture where water consumption is much higher. To remove pollutants, various studies have used different adsorbents such as biochar, activated carbon, zeolite, and resin among which biochar can effectively remove pollutants from aquatic environments because it is an effective, inexpensive, polar, highporosity adsorbent. Ion exchange, complex formation, surface adsorption, electron sharing, and biochar (carboxylic and pHenolic) - functional group interaction are among various mechanisms where the presence of negative charge on the biochar surface and positive charge on metal ions improve the adsorption process. As the activated carbon is made from cheap materials as wood, coal, oil, coke, sawdust, and plant waste, it is quite economical and highly capable of removing a wide range of organic and inorganic pollutants from aquatic and gaseous environments. Materials and Methods To prepare biochar, this research used the sugarcane bagasse as primary biomass by 1) washing it several times with ordinary and distilled water and drying it in the open air to remove its remaining salts, 2) crushing it with an industrial mill and placing it in an oven at 60 °C for 24 hrs to remove its excess moisture, 3) grinding the crushed bagasse with a small mill for further milling, 4) passing it through 60 and 100 mesh sieves in two stages for more uniformity and 5) placing it in closed containers. Biomass was converted to biochar (BC) using a heatprogrammable electric furnace where the temperature rise was set at five °C/min for a uniform heat distribution. Bagasse was placed inside a steel reactor into which nitrogen gas was injected at a fixed flow rate and prevented oxidation. Biomass was kept at 600 °C for two hrs thereafter the furnace was turned off, while nitrogen gas was injected, and the temperature was slowly lowered to that of the lab. Considering the sizes of the furnace and reactor, each time 20 g biomass was placed in the reactor and about five g biochar was produced after the carbonization process; the biochar production efficiency under these conditions was about 25%. Nano biochar (N-BC) was made by a planetary ball mill with ceramic cups and bullets where the bullet-to-biochar weight ratio was 15-to-one and the rotation speed was 300 rpm. The good mill-activity time was two, four, and six hrs. It worked for three min and rested for one minute to prevent the temperature from rising and cohesive masses from forming in the samples; as size and uniformity of particles were important, use was made of a gradation device. Results and Discussion In all treatments, by increasing the initial Chlorine concentration, the Chlorine removal had an increasing trend. on average, this was, using activated nano biochar 74.4% more than activated non-nano biochar. Magnetizing nano-absorbents reduced the Chlorine removal by 18.8%, on average. The highest and lowest Chlorine removal reductions due to the adsorbent magnetization were 31.6 and 10.9%, respectively. The highest Chlorine removal in all three activated non-nano, activated nano, and magnetically activated nano adsorbents (200 and 400 W treatments) was measured for an activator-to-biochar ratio of three. According to the results, Chlorine adsorption by magnetically activated nano absorbent reached equilibrium after 480 min in the treatment with 200 and 700 W microwave power and after 540 min in treatment with 400 W microwave power. Increasing the initial Chlorine concentration from three to 25 g l -1, increased the Chlorine removal by the magnetically activated nano absorbent by three, 3.5, and 2.6 times in 200, 400, and 700 W microwave power treatments, respectively. Conclusion The pseudo-first-order kinetic model had a good correlation with the data and the pseudo-second-order kinetic model did not correlate well with the data in times less than 60 min; hence, the dominating adsorption mechanism was not chemical in this interval. Intraparticle diffusion was an effective Chlorine-adsorption factor from the beginning of the adsorption process. Considering the correlation coefficient and sum of squared errors, the pseudofirst-order kinetic model and the intraparticle diffusion model had the highest correlation with the measured data. The average correlation coefficient for Langmuir and Freundlich models was found to be 0.9938 and 0.886, respectively. Therefore, the Langmuir isothermal model conformed better to the measured data than the Freundlich model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to its unique physicochemical properties, Pullulan is an exopolysaccharide with many applications in the food, biomedical, and pharmaceutical industries. Aiming to reduce its production cost, an interesting alternative is to consider other possibilities of raw materials, including the production of this biopolymer in a lignocellulosic biorefinery concept. Xylose is the main sugar of hemicellulosic hydrolysates obtained from different biomasses, and it is a sugar still not extensively exploited regarding its potential for pullulan production. This study aimed to evaluate the production of pullulan from sugarcane bagasse hemicellulosic hydrolysate by cultivating Aureobasidium pullulans ATCC 42023 in a bubble column reactor. The hemicellulosic hydrolysate was obtained through dilute acid treatment carried out in a stirred tank reactor before being detoxified to remove microbial growth inhibitors. The maximum concentration of 28.62 ± 1.43 g/L of pullulan was obtained after 120 h of fermentation in a bubble column reactor in batch mode. Analysis of spectroscopic properties through FTIR of the obtained pullulan revealed α-(1→6)-linked maltosyl units, similar to those of commercial samples of the biopolymer. XRD analysis showed that the prepared pullulan is amorphous, and a homogeneous morphology with a smooth surface of the pullulan was observed in SEM analysis. This study showed the potential of the production of pullulan from sugarcane bagasse hemicellulosic hydrolysate in a bubble column bioreactor, an alternative strategy for the industrial production of this biopolymer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a greenhouse gas emitted from combustion of hydrocarbon-based fuels which is estimated to cause a rise in the global temperatures by about 2.5 K by twenty-first century. Various liquid and solid sorbent-based technologies have been developed to capture the CO2 from combustion gases. However, these sorbents could not enjoy the commercial success due to their corrosive and toxic characteristics together with the poor energy efficiency and economics associated with the developed technologies. In this context, a biodegradable and nontoxic natural sugarcane bagasse cellulose-based aerogel with low density (15–112 kg/m3), high porosity (92.5–99.0%), and enhanced specific surface area (254.7–321.4 m2/g) characteristics has been synthesized through robust two simple steps, viz. sol–gel preparation and the lyophilization. The in situ amine grafting is observed to enhance the CO2 capturing ability of the aerogel and its hydrophobic character with a water contact angle of 143.6°. Furthermore, the CO2 adsorption and desorption studies revealed a sorption capacity of about 0.4 mmol/g at NTP for the synthesized aerogel. Nevertheless, the flexibility, high compressive strength (12.5 MPa) together with the low thermal conductivity (0.028–0.049 W/mK) of the synthesized amine-grafted sugarcane bagasse aerogel multiplies its application as an effective CO2 adsorbent and thermal insulator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the separation of lignin from a mild alkaline sugarcane bagasse extract was studied, and the impacts of different parameters on the filtration performance were evaluated. The tested parameters included transmembrane pressure (0.5–3.0 bar), shear rates (2831–22,696 s−1), temperature (20 and 40 °C), membrane molecular weight cut-off (5 and 10 kDa), and membrane material (polyethersulfone and polysulfone). During the filtration process, the permeate flux and all the main components of the extract were analyzed, including lignins (acid insoluble lignin and acid soluble lignin), sugars (xylose, arabinose, glucose, and galactose), total phenolic compounds, and phenolic acids (p-coumaric acid, ferulic acid, vanillin, and 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde). It was proved that the tested conditions had a great impact on the permeate flux and molecule retention rate. Increasing the temperature from 20 to 40 °C resulted in a much higher permeate flux for the 5 kDa PES membrane, and the impact of shear rate was greater at 40 °C for this membrane. Although the 5 kDa PES membrane could retain slightly more large molecules, i.e., acid-insoluble lignin and xylose, the 10 kDa membrane afforded greater phenolic acid removal capacity, leading to higher purity. For the 10 kDa PS membrane, the polarization layer began to form at TMP below 0.5 bar. This membrane had a lower retention rate for all molecules than the 10 kDa PES membrane. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sugarcane has primarily been used for sugar and ethanol production. It creates large quantities of residual lignocellulosic biomass such as sugarcane bagasse, leaves, tops, and vinasse. Biomass is a sustainable prospect for biorefineries aiming to optimize production processes. We detail recent research developments in recycling sugarcane, including energy generation and pyrolysis to obtain biofuels, for example. To produce biochar, the energy cost of operating at high temperatures and large-scale production remain as obstacles. The energy generation prospects can be enhanced by pellet production; however, it requires an improvement in quality control for long-term storage or long-distance transportation. In civil construction, the materials still need to prove their long-term efficiency and reliability. Related to adsorbent materials, the use of sugarcane bagasse has the advantage of being low-cost and environmentally friendly. Nevertheless, the extraction, functionalization, and modification of cellulose fibers, to improve their adsorption properties or even mode of operation, still challenges. The synthesis of nanostructures is still lacking high yields and the ability to scale up. Finally, controlling dispersion and orientation and avoiding fiber agglomeration could improve the mechanical response of composites using sugarcane bagasse. The different possibilities for using sugarcane and its residues reinforce the importance of this material for the industry and the global economy. Thus, the present work addresses current challenges and perspectives of different industrial processes involving sugarcane aiming to support future research on waste-derived subjects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Noise pollution is one of the serious environmental pollutions. In recent years, the preparation of sound absorption composites using natural fibers as reinforcement material has attracted much attention. Sugarcane bagasse is a by-product of sugarcane. In order to improve the utilization rate of sugarcane bagasse, enrich and expand the application field of its renewable resources, sugarcane bagasse as a reinforcement material, and polycaprolactone as a matrix material are used to prepare sugarcane bagasse/polycaprolactone sound absorption composites by hot press molding technology to analyze the sound absorption performance. The sound absorption mechanism of the sugarcane bagasse sound absorption composites is revealed. First, the structural characteristics of sugarcane bagasse were characterized, and the relationship between its structure and sound absorption performance was analyzed. Second, the effects of sugarcane bagasse length, mass fraction, hot pressing pressure, hot pressing time, and hot pressing temperature on the sound absorption performance were investigated by one-factor analysis. The results show that when the length of sugarcane bagasse was 1.0 mm, the mass fraction was 35%, the hot pressing pressure was 12 MPa, the hot pressing time was 20 min, and the hot pressing temperature was 130°C, the average sound absorption coefficient was 0.38, the noise reduction coefficient was 0.31, and the maximal sound absorption coefficient was 0.80. This study provides an experimental and theoretical basis for the research and development of sound absorption composites made of sugarcane bagasse, and provides a new solution for the recycling of sugarcane bagasse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]