SCANNING ELECTRON-MICROSCOPIC (SEM) STUDIES ON STRUCTURAL ARCHITECTURE OF LIGNOCELLULOSIC MATERIALS OF CALOTROPIS-PROCERA DURING ITS PROCESSING FOR SACCHARIFICATION

The structural architecture of lignocellulose fibres after various pre treatments, i.e. chemical, physical and biochemical, was evaluated thr ough SEM studies. These pretreatments, individual and integrated, rend ered the biomass of C. procera more susceptible and accessible to sacc harification and led to an increase in the production of fermentable s ugars. The morphological changes that took place in lignocellulosic bi omass included the removal of inhibitory materials like triterpenoids, hydrocarbons etc., production of cracks on the lignocellulosic fibres and exposure of cellulosic materials by the creation of pores during pretreatments. The most effective pretreatment was found to be enzymat ic delignification, which resulted in a remarkable increase in sugar p roduction, about 21-fold, by creating pores due to the removal of lign in from biomass, as revealed by SEM studies. Copyright (C) 1997 Elsevi er Science Ltd.