PROCESS FOR THE FERMENTATIVE PRODUCTION OF ETHANOL FROM SOLID LIGNOCELLULOSIC MATERIAL COMPRISING A STEP OF TREATING A SOLID LIGNOCELLULOSIC MATERIAL WITH ALKALINE SOLUTION IN ORDER TO REMOVE THE LIGNIN

摘要

The present invention relates to a process for obtaining fuel ethanol by using agricultural and agroindustrial waste materials composed of lignocellulose, and especially sugar cane bagasse. These residues have significant contents of carbohydrates in the form of polysaccharides (cellulose and hemicellulose), which can be hydrolysed by chemical and enzymic processes. The hemicellulose fraction is submitted to mild hydrolysis with sulphuric acid, and the solid material from this hydrolysis is submitted to a process of saccharif ication (enzymic hydrolysis) with simultaneous rapid alcoholic fermentation under conditions which allow a significant increase in conversion to alcohol in a greatly shortened time.