Production of Reducing Sugar from Oil Palm Empty Fruit Bunch (EFB) Cellulose Fibres via Acid Hydrolysis

Cellulosic fibre of oil palm empty fruit bunches (EFB) were used as a raw material for acid hydrolysis using mineral acids (H2SO4 and HCl) to produce reducing sugar at moderate temperature and atmospheric pressure. Experiments were carried out to investigate the effect of the hydrolysis parameters, including acid concentration, temperature, and reaction time, on the total reducing sugar (TRS) yield with the aid of response surface methodology (RSM). The preliminary hydrolysis studies of the EFB fibres showed that the presence of lignin in the fibres significantly affected the TRS yield. The maximum predicted TRS yield using H2SO4 was 30.61% under optimal conditions: acid concentration of 5 N, temperature of 139.65 ºC, and reaction time of 4.16 h. For the hydrolysis using HCl, the maximum predicted TRS yield is 39.81% under optimal conditions: acid concentration of 4.63 N, temperature of 133.7 ºC, reaction time of 2.05 h.