Resumen

VENTURA RIOS, Joel et al. Chemical composition and yield of maralfalfa biomass for the production of second generation bioetanol. Rev. Mex. Cienc. Agríc [online]. 2017, vol.8, n.1, pp.215-221. ISSN 2007-0934.  https://doi.org/10.29312/remexca.v8i1.85.

The objective of this experiment was to evaluate the production of biomass, chemical composition, proximal analysis, calorific value and bioethanol yield of the maralfalfa grass (Pennisetum glaucum*Pennisetum purpureum) harvested at six cutting frequencies. The highest production of biomass, calorific value and bioethanol yield was found at the cut-off frequency of 180 days with 28.5 Mg MS ha-1; 18.2 MJ kg-1 MS; 6982 L ha-1 of ethanol (p< 0.05), respectively. The ash and volatile matter content was higher (p< 0.05) in the cutoff frequency of 60 and 150 days (9.6% and 77.8%, respectively); while the moisture and fixed carbon content was higher at the cut-off frequency of 30 days (8.4% and 18.4%, respectively). The chemical composition varied significantly (p< 0.01) across the different physiological states, while the extractive content was higher (p< 0.05) in the cutoff frequency of 150 days (15.1%). The biomass yield, chemical composition, calorific value and proximal analysis of the maralfalfa grass allow it to be a good bioenergetic source for the liquid fuel industry.

Palabras llave : Pennisetum; bioethanol; calorific value; chemical composition; proximal analysis.