Corncob waste transformed into valuable biofuels and chemicals, boosting sustainability.
The researchers developed a method to extract valuable compounds from corncob, such as xylo-oligosaccharides, enzymes, fermentable sugars, and lignin. They used liquid hot water and enzymatic hydrolysis to break down the corncob. The most severe conditions led to the highest extraction of xylo-oligosaccharides and recovery of cellulose. They then produced xylanases and cellulases from the extracted compounds. By pretreating the solids, they were able to recover lignin and fermentable sugars, achieving a maximum glucose yield of 100%.