Comparación de la producción de alcohol etílico a partir del grano y la cascarilla de arroz utilizando levadura Saccharomyces cerevisiae como agente biológico

In this article, the use of rice grain and rice husks as raw material for the production of ethyl alcohol was compared, exposing an alternative use for rice husks, considered waste. An acid hydrolysis process was carried out with HCl and H2SO4 solutions for the raw material containing lignocellulosic material, also called starch, in order to convert it into glucose, which was consumed by Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast to produce ethanol. It was verified that by this means the best yield was obtained with a concentration of 4% w/w with HCl, for both raw materials, applying a temperature of 85 °C in a time of 80 min, thus obtaining 22% alcohol in the grain and 15% alcohol in the rice husk for each 100 mL of distilled substance. In addition, yield percentages were obtained with the grams of alcohol produced with respect to the grams of grain and rice husk, being these 64.92 and 18.30%, respectively, having the possibility of producing alcohol in considerable quantities, as well as vinegar, if the fermentation time is not correctly controlled. Keywords: Ethanol, acid hydrolysis, fermentation, Saccharomyces cerevisiae.En el presente artículo, se comparó el aprovechamiento del grano y cascarilla de arroz como materia prima para la producción de alcohol etílico, exponiendo un uso alternativo para la cascarilla de arroz, considerada desperdicio. Se realizó un proceso de hidrólisis ácida con soluciones de HCl y H2SO4, para la materia prima que contiene material lignocelulósicos, también llamado almidón, con el fin de convertirlo en glucosa que fue consumida por la levadura Saccharomyces cerevisiae para producir el etanol. Se verificó que por este medio el mejor rendimiento, se obtuvo con una concentración de 4% p/p con el HCl, para ambas materias primas, aplicando una temperatura de 85 °C en un tiempo de 80 min, obteniendo así un 22% de alcohol en el grano y un 15% de alcohol en la cascarilla de arroz por cada 100 mL de sustancia destilada. Además, se obtuvieron porcentajes de rendimiento con los gramos producidos de alcohol respecto a los gramos del grano y la cascarilla de arroz, siendo estos 64.92 y 18.30%, respectivamente, teniendo la posibilidad de producir alcohol en cantidades considerables, como también producir vinagre, sino es controlado correctamente el tiempo de fermentación. Palabras clave: Etanol, hidrólisis ácida, fermentación, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Abstract In this article, the use of rice grain and rice husks as raw material for the production of ethyl alcohol was compared, exposing an alternative use for rice husks, considered waste. An acid hydrolysis process was carried out with HCl and H2SO4 solutions for the raw material containing lignocellulosic material, also called starch, in order to convert it into glucose, which was consumed by Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast to produce ethanol. It was verified that by this means the best yield was obtained with a concentration of 4% w/w with HCl, for both raw materials, applying a temperature of 85 °C in a time of 80 min, thus obtaining 22% alcohol in the grain and 15% alcohol in the rice husk for each 100 mL of distilled substance. In addition, yield percentages were obtained with the grams of alcohol produced with respect to the grams of grain and rice husk, being these 64.92 and 18.30%, respectively, having the possibility of producing alcohol in considerable quantities, as well as vinegar, if the fermentation time is not correctly controlled. Keywords: Ethanol, acid hydrolysis, fermentation, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Información del manuscrito:Fecha de recepción: 02 de febrero de 2022. Fecha de aceptación: 07 de marzo de 2022.Fecha de publicación: 10 de enero de 2023