Unlocking the potential of Dongting Lake-grown Miscanthus lutarioriparius biomass: A comprehensive quality analysis and bioproduct application study

Qiang Xu; Shenglan Wu; Tongcheng Fu; Yi Xu; Sai Yang; Meng Li; Zili Yi; Shuai Xue

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.165276

Unlocking the potential of Dongting Lake-grown Miscanthus lutarioriparius biomass: A comprehensive quality analysis and bioproduct application study

Sci Total Environ. 2023 Oct 20:896:165276. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.165276. Epub 2023 Jul 3.

Authors

Qiang Xu¹, Shenglan Wu², Tongcheng Fu³, Yi Xu⁴, Sai Yang⁵, Meng Li³, Zili Yi³, Shuai Xue⁶

Affiliations

¹ College of Bioscience & Biotechnology, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, PR China.
² Orient Science & Technology College of Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, PR China.
³ College of Bioscience & Biotechnology, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, PR China; Hunan Engineering Laboratory of Miscanthus Ecological Applications, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, PR China; Hunan Branch, National Energy R & D Center for Non-food Biomass, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, PR China.
⁴ College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, PR China.
⁵ Orient Science & Technology College of Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, PR China; Hunan Engineering Laboratory of Miscanthus Ecological Applications, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, PR China; Hunan Branch, National Energy R & D Center for Non-food Biomass, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, PR China.
⁶ College of Bioscience & Biotechnology, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, PR China; Hunan Engineering Laboratory of Miscanthus Ecological Applications, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, PR China; Hunan Branch, National Energy R & D Center for Non-food Biomass, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, PR China. Electronic address: xue_shuai@hunau.edu.cn.

PMID: 37406706
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.165276

Abstract

Miscanthus lutarioriparius grown in Dongting Lake has an annual biomass yield potential of 1 million tons. However, with the shutdown of its previous utilization for paper-making, abandoning this huge amount of biomass has caused serious economic, ecological, and social problems. Constructing an industrial cluster to continuously convert biomass into various bioproducts is a win-win measure to address this dilemma. With the increasing confirmation of the importance of biomass quality affecting the conservation process, fully understanding the biomass characteristics of Dongting Lake-grown M. lutarioriparius is crucial for building a scientific industrial cluster. The present work is designed to explore the variation in biomass quality across the entire Dongting Lake area. Results show that the biomass contented with Cd, Mn, Zn, and Cr has significant geographical differences, with a general trend of Southern Dongting Lake-grown biomass having a higher concentration than that from Eastern and Western Dongting Lake areas. Moreover, significant differences are found in terms of biomass ash content, lignin content, and the degree of polymerization of cellulose (DP). The biomass with low ash content is generally from the entire Eastern Dongting Lake area and the northern part of the Western Dongting Lake area. Virtually all Western Dongting Lake-grown biomass has a low lignin content (approximately 18 %). Regarding the spatial variation of DP, Eastern Dongting Lake-grown biomass has a higher DP (average at 585.33) than that in Southern (575.15) and then Western Dongting Lake (529.16). Based on these quality indicators, the biomass production potentials for bioethanol, biochar, and xylo-oligosaccharide were calculated and visualized. Results show that biomass from almost the entire Western and Eastern Dongting Lake area is suitable for bioethanol and xylo-oligosaccharide production, while biomass from the Southern Dongting Lake area for biochar production. These results provide scientific guidance for the future utilization of Dongting Lake-grown M. lutarioriparius biomass.

Keywords: Biochar; Biofuel; Biomass quality; Geographical variation; Production potential; Xylo-oligosaccharide.

MeSH terms

Biomass
China
Environmental Monitoring*
Lakes / analysis
Lignin* / analysis
Poaceae

Substances

biochar
Lignin