Electrofluid hydrolysis enhances the production of fermentable sugars from corncob via in/reverse-phase induced voltage.

To improve the economic value of lignocellulosic biomasses, an innovative electrofluidic technology has been applied to the efficient hydrolysis of corncob. The system combines fluidic reactors and induced voltages via magnetoelectric coupling effect. The excitation voltage had a positive impact on reducing sugar content (RSC). But, the increase of voltage frequency at 400-700Hz caused a slight decline of the RSC. Higher temperature limits the electrical effect on the hydrolysis at 70-80°C. The energy efficiency increased under the addition of metallic ions and series of in-phase induced voltage to promote hydrolysis. In addition, the 4-series system with in-phase and reverse-phase induced voltages under the synchronous magnetic flux, exhibited a significant influence on the RSC with a maximum increase of 56%. High throughput could be achieved by increasing series in a compact system. Electrofluid hydrolysis avoids electrochemical reaction, electrode corrosion, and sample contamination.