STUDIES ON PLANT BIOMASS IN VARIOUS STAGES OF DEGRADATION

Abstract

Lignocellulosic residues from wood, grass, agricultural, forestry wastes and municipal solid wastes are particularly abundant in nature and have a potential for bioconversion. Due to their abundance and renewability, there has been a great deal of interest in utilizing this biomass for the production and recovery of many value-added products. Accumulation of lignocellulosic materials in large quantities in places where agricultural residues present a disposal problem results not only in deterioration of the environment but also in loss of potentially valuable material that can be used in paper manufacture, biomass fuel production, composting, human and animal feed among others. Several novel markets for lignocellulosic residues have been identified recently. The use of fungi in low cost bioremediation projects might be attractive given their lignocelluloses hydrolysis enzyme machinery. This paper presents the evolution of the lignocelluloses degradation from vegetal residues (sawdust, rose leaves, rushes leaves and corn leaves) during five months, in aerobic and anaerobic conditions. The degradation process gives small molecules like polyphenols. We used Folin-Cicâlteu method for evaluation of lignine amount that is transformed in corresponding polyphenols. It was observed a growth of transformed amount along this period. Therefore, we can conclude that the lignocellulosic degradation occurred. This increase in degradability could have important implications in the evaluation of the composting process.