OPTIMIZATION OF ENZYMATIC HYDROLYSIS OF CORNCOB FOR BIOFUEL PRODUCTION USING MULTI-ENZYME SYSYTEMS

The depletion of fossil fuels and the associated environmental challenges have accelerated the search for sustainable biofuels from renewable sources like corncob. This study investigated the use of synergistic enzyme cocktails to enhance the enzymatic hydrolysis of acid-pretreated corncob. Initial screening showed that only pectinase and β-glucosidase demonstrated significant synergy with cellulase. Using Response Surface Methodology (RSM), a highly predictive quadratic model, with an R 2 value of 0.9571, was developed to optimize the enzyme cocktail. The optimal blend, consisting of 10 mg/g cellulase, 39.88 mg/g pectinase, and 38.20 mg/g β-glucosidase, achieved a hydrolysis yield of 42.35%. This represents a 5.25-fold increase compared to using cellulase alone. These findings underscore the effectiveness of enzyme synergy and process optimization as key strategies for efficiently valorizing corncob into fermentable sugars for sustainable biobutanol production