Sugarcane bagasse valorization through integrated process for single cell oil, sulfonated carbon-based catalyst and biodiesel co-production

• Published in: Carbon resources conversion 2024-04, p.100245, Article 100245
• Main Authors: Hassa, Weeraphat, Fiala, Khanittha, Apiraksakorn, Jirawan, Leesing, Ratanaporn
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biodiesel; Candida tropicalis KKU-NP1; Single cell oil; Sugarcane bagasse; Sulfonated carbon-based catalyst
• ISSN: 2588-9133; 2588-9133
• DOI: 10.1016/j.crcon.2024.100245

[Display omitted] •Sugarcane bagasse (SB) was efficiently utilized by sequentially SCO, catalyst and biodiesel production.•Candida tropicalis KKU-NP1 accumulated SCO of 26.5% from SB hydrolysate.•Facile one-step hydrothermal sulfonation used to generate a novel SBS@SC catalyst.•SBS@SC catalyzed-direct transesterification gave 90.1% of FAME conversion yield.•Biodiesel showed great physicochemical and fuel properties. This study demonstrates the conversion of sugarcane bagasse (SB) into single cell oil (SCO), sulfonated carbon-based catalyst and biodiesel; this process aligns with waste-to-energy and circular bioeconomy concepts. SB was treated with dilute sulfuric acid to achieve SB hydrolysate (SBH) and SB solid residue (SBS). Candida tropicalis KKU-NP1, a newly isolated yeast, accumulated SCO content of 26.5 % from undetoxified SBH medium. A novel sulfonated carbon-based catalyst (SBS@SC) was generated from SBS by a one-step hydrothermal sulfonation process. It showed significant catalytic activity for the conversion of SCO-rich KKU-NP1 wet cell into biodiesel (FAME) under direct transesterification optimal conditions, with a FAME conversion yield of 90.1 %. Based on FAME profile, most of the estimated physicochemical and fuel properties of FAME were within the limits of ASTMD6751 and EN 14214 for biodiesel standards. For integrated process the final production of about 12.0 g SCO, 606.3 g SBS@SC catalyst and 10.8 g biodiesel from 1000 g raw SB were achieved.This study highlights the utilization of SB as a low-cost feedstock for producing multiple value-added products, emphasizing the advantages of waste utilization by integrated biorefinery concept, yielding practically no waste by-products over the whole production process.