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Updated: May 1, 2026

High-throughput Saccharification Assay for Lignocellulosic Materials
Published on: July 3, 2011
Simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of Eastern redcedar heartwood and sapwood using a novel size reduction
Karthikeyan D Ramachandriya1, Mark Wilkins1, Oscar Pardo-Planas1
1Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, USA.
Abstract:
This study investigated the effect of two wood zones (sapwood versus heartwood) and size reduction techniques [Crumbles® (Crumbles® is a registered trademark of Forest Concepts, LLC, Auburn, WA, USA) particles versus ground particles] on wood glucan-to-ethanol yield after acid bisulfite pretreatment and simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) of Eastern redcedar. SSFs were conducted at 8% solids loading (w/w dry basis) using Accellerase® 1500 at a loading of 46FPU/g glucan and Saccharomyces cerevisiae D5A for ethanol fermentation. The size reduction technique had no effect on ethanol yield. However, sapwood glucan-to-ethanol yields were significantly greater than heartwood yields. The highest wood glucan-to-ethanol yield of 187L/dryMg (95% of theoretical) was achieved with sapwood crumbled particles in 240h. Ground sapwood, crumbled heartwood and ground heartwood achieved ethanol yields of 89%, 81% and 80% of theoretical in 240h, respectively. Preliminary mass balances showed 100% glucan recovery with crumbled sapwood and extensive (72%) delignification.

