Effect of inhibitors released during steam-explosion pretreatment of barley straw on enzymatic hydrolysis.

The influence of the liquid fraction (prehydrolysate) generated during steam-explosion pretreatment (210 degrees C, 15 min) of barley straw on the enzymatic hydrolysis was determined. Prehydrolysate was analyzed for degradation compounds and sugars' content and used as a medium for enzymatic hydrolysis tests after pH adjusting to 4.8. Our results show that the presence of the compounds contained in the prehydrolysate strongly affects the hydrolysis step (a 25% decrease in cellulose conversion compared with control). Sugars are shown to be more potent inhibitors of enzymatic hydrolysis than degradation products.