Development and validation of a fast high pressure liquid chromatography method for the analysis of lignocellulosic biomass hydrolysis and fermentation products

A simple, precise, and accurate 10-min high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) method was developed and validated for the analysis of organic acids, alcohols, and furans from processing biomass into renewable fuels. The method uses an H(+) form cation-exchange resin stationary phase that has a five-fold shorter analysis time versus that in the traditional method. The new method was used for the analysis of acetic acid, ethanol, 5-hydroxymethyl furfural, and furfural. Results were compared with a legacy method that has historically has been used to analyze the same compounds but with a 55 min run time. Linearity was acceptable on the new method with r(2)>0.999 for all compounds using refractive index detection. Limits of detection were between 0.003 and 0.03 g/L and limits of quantification were between 0.1 and 0.01 g/L. The relative standard deviations for precision were less than 0.4% and recoveries ranged from 92% to 114% for all compounds.