The possibility of producing ethanol from biomass such as maize cobs and groundnut shells was investigated. Different concentrations of sulphuric acid (H2SO4) were used to determine the acid concentration that could produce an optimal yield of glucose. The results revealed that H2SO4 produced the optimal yield of glucose and ethanol. This acid concentration was then used for the study of temperature effects on yield of glucose. The results indicated that glucose yield increased with temperature within the experimental set-up | AU . 9 2 106-110 Oct. 2005 The Production of Ethanol from Maize Cobs and Groundnut Shells . Akpan . Kovo M. Abdullahi and J. J. Ijah Department of Chemical Engineering Federal University of Technology Minna Nigeria Abstract The possibility of producing ethanol from biomass such as maize cobs and groundnut shells was investigated. Different concentrations of sulphuric acid H2SO4 were used to determine the acid concentration that could produce an optimal yield of glucose. The results revealed that H2SO4 produced the optimal yield of glucose and ethanol. This acid concentration was then used for the study of temperature effects on yield of glucose. The results indicated that glucose yield increased with temperature within the experimental set-up. The maize cobs and groundnut shells were mixed at various ratios and pretreated to remove all extractives. The ratio of 3 1 of maize cobs to groundnut shells and at acid gave a better glucose yield than those obtained from individual biomass. The ultimate product glucose was hydrolyzed and 8 ethanol was obtained within three hours. Keywords Alcohol glucose biomass hydrolysis fermentation. Introduction The rapid growth of industries and technological advancement in the world call for development in the chemical sector. The production of industrial chemicals will enhance the economic progress of any nation. Ethanol one of the important industrial chemicals can be produced extensively from biomass such as maize cob and groundnut shell. The main constituents of this class of crop by-product are cellulose Chang et al. 1981 and hemicelluloses making them lignocelluloses Cowling 1976 that can be excellent energy sources. The practice of mechanized farming has led to extensive discharge of agricultural wastes that have had negative effects on the environment. The utilization of such wastes has been a source of concern to many researchers Oyenuga 1959 Akpan 1999 Amosun 2000 . Therefore this work was designed to look
