[Raman Spectra Study on Topochemistry in Miscanthus × giganteus Cell Walls During Dilute Acid Pretreatment]

Confocal Raman microspectroscopy (CRM) represents a powerful technique that can provide insights into topochemistry in lignocellulosic biomass cell wall. In this work, CRM was used to explore the impact of dilute acid (DA) pretreatment on the topochemistry of lignin and hydroxycinnamic acid (HCA) in the-fiber cell walls of Miscanthus × giganteus internode. Raman spectra extracted from different morphological regions of untreated fiber cell walls indicated the heterogeneous concentration of lignin and HCA. There is a companied trend between them, that is, regions where there is the higher lignin concentration have the higher concentration of HCA. When treated with DA, it was found that the intensity of 1600 cm(-1) (lignin) and 1170 cm(-1) (HCA) were decreased, which could be contributed to the partially removal of lignin and HCA. The removal rate in different morphological areas followed the decreasing order: secondary cell wall (SW) > compound middle lamella (CML) > cell corner middle lamella (CCML). The increase of the Raman band intensity ratio (1170/1600) indicated the preferential removal of lignin in the SW and CML as a result of DA pretreatment, while the constant of the ratio meant there is no preference between lignin and HCA in the CCML. The research will provide the deep understanding of the topochemistry of lignin and HCA at sub-cellular level during DA pretreatment, meanwhile, it also expands the application of Raman spectra in the research area of plant cell wall.