Unveiling the potential of water as a co-solvent in microwave-assisted delignification of sugarcane bagasse using ternary deep eutectic solvents

Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) have become popular owing to their biodegradability and recyclability. In this study, the influence of water as a co-solvent is demonstrated to enhance the properties of choline based ternary DESs. A fast and energy-efficient microwave-assisted pre-treatment process was developed for delignification of sugarcane bagasse (SB). The effectiveness of SB fractionation was revealed by incorporating Lewis acids (MgCl2.6H20, NiCl2.6H20) with the DESs for pre-treatment and Choline chloride: Ethylene glycol: NiCl2.6H20 (CC:EG:NI) at a molar ratio 1:2:0.016 with 20w% water as a co-solvent provided the most promising result, with 84% delignification and 99% enzyme digestibility. Water was also employed as an anti-solvent to facilitate lignin solubility and exhibited up to 26w% lignin yield from DES liquor with maximum DES recovery of 95% (w/w). Water distinctly affects the density, viscosity, and intermolecular hydrogen bonding of the DES and its impact on the process dynamics is worth further exploration. © 2022 Elsevier Ltd