Track: Energy and Resource Efficiency
Abstract
Landfill organic waste fraction was investigated for the potential to generate bio ethanol, a liquid bio fuel that can be used in place of the conventional liquid fuels. This was achieved through acid treatment enzymatic hydrolysis. The organic fraction waste was first pre-treated with dilute sulphuric acid at 121 °C for 15 minutes. Afterwards it underwent enzymatic hydrolysis at 50 °C for a period of 5 days to allow the release of C6 sugars. The hydrolysate was then fermented at 30 °C for 5 days with yeast inoculated as the bio catalyst to produce bio ethanol. Enzymatic hydrolysis and the prior pre-treatment resulted in a high yield of 60% of the C6 sugars. The bio ethanol produced from the fermentable sugars was 40%. There is potential for utilization of the organic municipal waste fraction for bio fuels production.