(611c) Nanofiltration & Separation of Hydrolyzates from Sugar Maple Wood

We investigated the separation of hemicelluloses from sugar maple hydrolyzates in order to process them further by fermenting to bioethanol liquid fuels. The wood chips were pre-extracted using hot water according to a process developed at ESF. Papermaking pulps were prepared using traditional alkaline pulping processes conventional paper products may be manufactured downstream. The wood hydrolyzate leaches significant quantities of hemicelluloses along with a small amount of lignin and other extractives. The leachate was separated using nanofiltration membranes and acetic acid was obtained. Different methods for filtering the extracts and the properties of the permeates and concentrates were determined.