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The depletion of fossil fuels has caused a significant increase in the oil prices since last
two decades. The energy crises are distinct threat to the sustainable development in third world
countries. Fuel prices in the Philippines are among the most expensive in Southeast Asia
(Philippine Daily Inquirer, 2018) and the fossil fuels energy consumption in the Philippines was
reported at 61.99% in 2014, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators.
Since fuels aren’t getting any cheaper, some people can’t even afford it. The global economy can
no longer depend on fossil fuels and non-renewable carbon and with reference to current energy
scenario, scientific community needs to pay special attention on alternative or renewable fuels,
such as biofuels as the feedstock is widely available thus in the last two decades, global research
programs on alternative energy have been directed towards discovering new and sustainable
energy sources. To settle those setbacks, humans need to find more abundant and renewable
source of fuel that is cost effective and an alternative source that could keep the world running
on its wheel.
The energy system is very unstable because the energy resources on earth are limited, and
humans have utilized the conventional technologies to fulfill our needs. Consumption of energy
by humans increased gradually as human needs also increase. Energy resources mainly include
fossil fuels, but research shows that these fuels source will be consumed completely in
approximately 20-25 years. This could cause major problems around the world. As a result, we
need to discover and produce an alternative source of fuel that could keep the world running on
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Ethanol is also referred as ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol or ETOH, that has a characteristic
of clear liquid with an agreeable odor. Ethanol can be made basically in two methods which are
by fermenting and distilling simple sugars. Producers of ethanol mostly benefit upon agricultural
setting which is most commonly practiced in tropical countries. Most fuel ethanol produced in
the U.S. is derived from corn. Latest figures indicate that almost 40 percent of the U.S. corn crop
is dedicated to ethanol production (Red Field Energy, LLC, 2018). One of the most top
producers of ethanol of Brazil using sugar being one of their feedstock. Since it is produced from
crops or plants that harness the power of the sun, ethanol is considered a renewable fuel.
According to Statistics MRC, the global Bioethanol market is valued at $48.7 billion in 2016 and
is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.4% to reach $75.5 billion by 2023. The global market for
bioethanol derives much of its growth from the increasing demand for renewable energy sources
(Herald Keeper via COMTEX, 2015). North America has been leading the global market for the
source of bioethanol. The growing usage of these products in the transportation industry and
growing government & environment regulations are the factors anticipated to fuel the demand
for bioethanol in North America over the future, ensuring its popularity. While the Latins and
Asians are able to witness the strong growth due to the availability of arable land in India, China
and Brazil.
Ethanol is currently produced from the easily fermented sugar and starch in grain and
food processing wastes. There will be many benefits by connecting the established corn ethanol
industry with the emerging technologies that produce ethanol from agricultural wastes and other
types of biomass. Currently, the United States produces approximately three billion gallons of
ethanol from corn annually (Potera, 2004). The sugar beets and sugar cane are very good
examples of these feed stocks that contain the sugar. Bioethanol is mainly produced by the sugar
2
fermentation process. Saccharomyces cerevisiae are microorganisms that cannot be seen with the
naked eye, they convert carbon sources (Sugar) to bioethanol during fermentation process,
thereby meeting energy demand (Ojewumi, 2017). In the breweries, Saccharomyces cerevisiae is
used in alcohol production and this occurs by converting sugar to energy. Saccharomyces
cerevisiae is also used in the bakeries for raising dough. Other enzyme uses dextrin to make
Zymomonas mobilis can also ferment but it is limited to glucose, fructose and sucrose. (Cardona,
2008).
Ethanol is blended in all the gasolines in the country today especially in the Philippines.
The Biofuels Act of 2006 requires all companies in the Philippines to mix in 10% of ethanol in
all their gasoline. Ethanol (or E10), which is made from sweet sorghum, corn, and cassava, also
uses our abundant sugarcanes (primarily in Mindanao, Luzon, Negros and Panay) for its
production (Carmudi Philippines, 2018). There are five reasons why they are included in our
gasoline today because of environment-friendly factor, the support sugar and other crop farmers
in the country, it help lessen the dependence on other countries for fuel, it is safe to use in cars;
and cost-effective.
According to Ramkumar Nair of University of Boras (2017), they have been verifying a
process that they hope will work in an industrial scale, when it comes to using existing ethanol
factories. Through that process, the industry can become more sustainable and use agricultural or
industrial waste for the production of bioethanol. Bioethanol is used for fuel for ethanol cars,
among other things. Usually, wheat, sugar canes, or corn are used for ethanol production. In
Sweden, wheat is the most common. "But these are crops that could be used as human nutrition,"
Ramkumar Nair says. “It is more sustainable if we could use waste to create fuel, and this is
3
something we have been working on in several projects here at the University of Borås.”
Ramkumar Nair tells us that these research and pilots project where waste is used are called the
second generation ethanol processes, whereas the current industrial production is called the first
generation ethanol process. Ramkumar has now verified a process that integrates the first and the
Thus, the researchers came up with an idea of using coconut (Cocos nucifera) shell as an
reagent. The coconut shell has a high calorific value of 20.8MJ/kg and can be used to produce
steam, energy-rich gases, bio-oil, biochar and etc. Coconut shell contains lower ash content, high
volatile matter and mostly available in triopical countries which is at a cheap cost. It is to be
noted that coconut shell and coconut husk are solid fuels that are usually prominent in making
fuel due to their potential characteristics (Salman Zafar, 2020). By fermenting and distilling the
ground coconut shell to produce an alternative source of bioethanol will be a great help to solve
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Statement of The Problem
This study aims to utilize shell of coconut (Cocos nucifera) to find out if it is a possible
1. Is there any significant difference on the amount of ethanol produced from coconut
time?
2. Is there any significant difference between the commercial ethanol and the ethanol
a. Combustibility
b. Color of flame
Null Hypotheses
Ho : There is no significant difference on the amount of ethanol produced using coconut shell
Ho : There is no significant difference between the commercial ethanol and the ethanol produced
a. Combustibility
b. Color of flame
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Significance of The Study
This study will be conducted to derive bioethanol from coconut shell. It aims to reduce
the use of commercial ethanol which causes pollution and loss of non-renewable resources. It
presents a natural, alternative, cheaper, human and environmentally friendly bioethanol. Thus,
the making of ethanol makes transportation cheaper than before. This research can also give
The significance of this study is when the researchers use the shell of coconut for
producing a bioethanol gas; the researchers are not just helping the environment to be clean, we
are also relating the matter of reusing the unused things that we can see in our environment.
Coconuts are commonly seen in our country, and sometimes, some parts of it are wasted. Ethanol
is much less likely to catch fire and less possibility to explode in case of fuel leakage. It has also
low green house gases emission.We can avoid fires that may occur while using bioethanol gas
and it is less expensive than the commonly used gas. This is why the idea of using coconut shell
This study focuses on the utilization of waste materials produced into a useful one. This
study will be conducted and use coconut shell as an alternative source of bioethanol for industrial
uses. The coconut shells will be collected in the the vicinity of Concepcion, Tarlac and the
experimentation will be conducted at St. Jude Village, Concepcion, Tarlac and the school
laboratory of Benigno S. Aquino National High School, Senior High School Department, San
Nicolas Poblacion, Concepcion, Tarlac. The coconut shells will undergo pretreatment, where the
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degradation of hemicellulose and reduction in crystallinity and degree of polymerization of
cellulose (Loow et al., 2015; Chen et al., 2017) and alkaline pretreatment which is a widely
studied chemical pretreatment method which is based on the solubilization of lignin in the
alkaline solution. Among the various alkaline reagents used commonly for alkaline pretreatment,
sodium hydroxide was found to be the most effective (Kim et al., 2016) that’s why it was the
alkaline reagent used in this research. The samples will also undergo acid hydrolysis in order to
break down the cellulose and hemicellulose polymers in lignocellulosic biomass to form
individual sugar molecules which can be fermented into ethanol. Fermentation was also
conducted where yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) is added to the solution, and then fermented
for days (5, 7, and 9 days). The yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) contains an enzyme called
invertase, which acts as a catalyst and helps to convert the sucrose sugars into glucose and
fructose. The last procedure is distillation which is the most dominant and recognized industrial
purification technique of ethanol. Distillation setup will be used in order to produce the
The fermented samples will be compared in terms of the volume of ethanol produced
during the distillation process to determine any significant difference in terms of the
fermentation time on ethanol production. The fermented samples will be tested in terms of their
color and combustibility and were compared to the commercial one. The color of the flame,
smoke and the duration of the flame between the fermented samples will be observed. The
commercial ethanol, the controlled variable is to compare the results of the alternative ethanol.
The samples will undergo combustion test to measure how easily the samples ignite, how
7
The data to be gathered during the experimentation would be presented using series of
tables which will indicate any significant difference on the amount of volume produced during
the ethanol production based on the fermentation time of the different fermented samples and to
compare the produced ethanol from the commercial one. To interpret the data effectively, the
8
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
Bioethanol
Alternatives to petroleum-derived fuels are being sought in order to reduce the world's
dependence on non-renewable resources. The most common renewable fuel today is ethanol
derived from corn grain (starch) and sugar cane (sucrose). It is expected that there will be limits
to the supply of these raw materials in the near future, therefore lignocellulosic biomass is seen
as an attractive feedstock for future supplies of ethanol. However, there are technical and
Technologies are being developed that will allow cost-effective conversion of biomass into fuels
effective cellulases and hemicellulases and efficient and robust fermentative microorganisms.
Many advances have been made over the past few years that make commercialization more
According to Ramkumar Nair of University of Boras (2017), they have been verifying a
process that they hope will work in an industrial scale, when it comes to using existing ethanol
factories. Through that process, the industry can become more sustainable and use agricultural or
industrial waste for the production of bioethanol. Bioethanol is used for fuel for ethanol cars,
among other things. Usually, wheat, sugar canes, or corn are used for ethanol production. In
Sweden, wheat is the most common. "But these are crops that could be used as human nutrition,"
Ramkumar Nair says. “It is more sustainable if we could use waste to create fuel, and this is
something we have been working on in several projects here at the University of Borås.”
Ramkumar Nair tells us that these research and pilots project where waste is used are called the
second generation ethanol processes, whereas the current industrial production is called the first
9
generation ethanol process. Ramkumar has now verified a process that integrates the first and the
Ethanol
Also referred to as ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol or ETOH, ethanol is a clear liquid with an
agreeable odor. Ethanol is made by fermenting and distilling simple sugars. Today, ethanol is a
fuel produced from crops such as corn, grain sorghum, wheat, sugar and other agricultural
feedstocks. Most fuel ethanol produced in the U.S. is derived from corn. Latest figures indicate
that almost 40 percent of the U.S. corn crop is dedicated to ethanol production. In Brazil, the
world’s top producer of ethanol, sugar is the primary feedstock. Since it is produced from crops
or plants that harness the power of the sun, ethanol is considered a renewable fuel. Pure fuel
ethanol contains chemical properties identical to that of other grain alcohol. As such, it must be
denatured or made unfit for human consumption. In the U.S., the most common denaturant is
Fermentation
Fermentation is one important biological technology that can synthesize various valuable
compounds to satisfy the requirement of chemical industry, energy, food, etc. (Bio resource
Technology, 2017). Yeast and certain bacteria perform ethanol fermentation where pyruvate
(from glucose metabolism) is broken into ethanol and carbon dioxide. The net chemical
10
Ethanol fermentation has used the production of beer, wine, and bread. It's worth noting
that fermentation in the presence of high levels of pectin results in the production of small
amounts of methanol, which is toxic when consumed. (Anne Marie Helmenstine, 2019)
Hydrolysis
break down the bonds of a particular substance. In biotechnology and as far as living organisms
are concerned, these substances are often polymers (simply put, many similar molecules can that
join together). Hydrolysis can also be thought of as the exact opposite reaction to condensation,
which is the process whereby two molecules combine to form one larger molecule. The end
result of this reaction is that the larger molecule ejects a water molecule. (Theresa Philips, 2019).
The coconut is the most cultivated nut in the world and a very important commercial
crop in many tropical countries. The nut meat, coconut oil from the dried meat and milk are
used for drinks, cooking, cosmetics and numerous other types of products. Unopened flowers can
potentially produce coconut molasses and the hard-grained shell of the nut is carved into
practical utensils and ornamental objects. Coconut palms are propagated only from seed. The
seeds, or coconut nuts, are ready for planting when they make a sloshing sound upon shaking.
Following soaking in water for two or three days, the nut is placed on its side or with the pointed
end down in a well-drained site or container with well-drained growing medium and covered
about halfway with sand or mulch. Germination occurs best with regular moisture and
temperatures between 90 and 100 degrees Fahrenheit and takes three to six months. Coconut
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palms grow rapidly and can begin to bear fruit after as few as five years. (Angela Ryczkowski,
2018)
Coconut Shell
The coconut shell has a high calorific value of 20.8MJ/kg and can be used to produce
steam, energy-rich gases, bio-oil, biochar etc. It is to be noted that coconut shell and coconut
husk are solid fuels that are usually prominent in making fuel due to their potential
characteristics. Coconut shell contains lower ash content, high volatile matter and mostly
available in triopical countries which is at a cheap cost. The higher fixed carbon content leads to
the production to a high-quality solid residue which can be used as activated carbon in
wastewater treatment. Coconut shell is more popular in tropical countries which the production
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RELATED STUDIES
Due to the loss of fuel resources the prices of fuels are continuously rising. Fuel prices in
the Philippines are among the most expensive in Southeast Asia (Philippine Daily Inquirer,
2018). And the fossil fuels energy consumption in the Philippines was reported at 61.99% in
2014, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators. Since fuels aren’t
getting any cheaper, some people can’t even afford it. To settle those setbacks, humans need to
find more abundant and renewable source of fuel that is cost effective and an alternative source
Bioethanol
various feedstock that contain mainly fermentable sugar or rich in carbohydrates. Its molecular
formula is CH3CH2OH same organic compound that is used in alcoholic beverages. Bioethanol is
commonly used liquid biofuel in the world. Raw feedstock usually has lignin content. It can be
Ethanol
solvent and preservatives as well as serving as the primary ingredient in alcoholic beverages.
Indeed, ethanol has widespread use as a solvent of substances intended for human contact or
consumption, including scents, flavorings, coloring, and medicines. Ethanol is the leading liquid
biofuel used for transportation. First-generation ethanol has a simple production process using
sugar or grain as raw material (sugarcane juice in Brazil and corn in the USA and EU, for
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example), while 2G ethanol (bioethanol) has more complex steps of production and uses
Fermentation
Fermentation is a metabolic process that converts sugar to acid derivatives, various gases,
or alcohol. Another definition is that fermentation is the chemical process by which molecules
such as glucose (C6H12O6) are decomposed anaerobically. The process can involve complete
decomposition of the glucose to carbon dioxide and water (+ energy) or can be adapted to
produce ethanol (ethyl alcohol + energy). Fermentation offers a pathway for the use
Saccharomyces cerevisiae are microorganisms that cannot be seen with the naked eye,
they convert carbon sources (Sugar) to bioethanol during fermentation process, thereby meeting
energy demand (Ojewumi, 2017). Saccharomyces cerevisiae has traditionally been used to
produce alcohol in brewing and wine industries (Azhar et al., 2017). In the breweries,
Saccharomyces cerevisiae is used in alcohol production and this occurs by converting sugar to
energy. . This yeast produces high yields of ethanol with high productivity (Lama et al., 2012).
Saccharomyces cerevisiae is also used in the bakeries for raising dough. Other enzyme uses
cerevisiae, Zymomonas mobilis can also ferment but it is limited to glucose, fructose and sucrose.
(Cardona, 2008).
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Hydrolysis
Hydrolysis is the process of breaking cellulose and hemicellulose into simple sugar
monomers that can be fermented (Sarkar et al. 2012). There are different hydrolysis strategies
like dilute and concentrated acid, alkaline, hot compressed water, and enzymatic (Yu et al.,
2008). Enzymatic hydrolysis is the most widely used as it is the most eco-friendly. On the other
hand, alkaline and acid hydrolysis present high toxicity, high utility cost, lower sugar yields, and
substance. Sometimes this addition causes both substance and water molecule to split into two
parts. In such reactions, one fragment of the target molecule (or parent molecule) gains a
hydrogen ion.
countries, but its industry generates large amounts of residue. One way to address this problem is
to use this residue, coconut husk, to produce second-generation (2G) ethanol (Telleria et al.,
2018).
Coconut palms usually have just one upright trunk with non-showy, light tan bark. They
can become up to 60 feet tall and 25 feet wide at the top. Cocos nucifera also comes in smaller
dwarf varieties that grow just 10 to 15 feet tall. Coconut harvesting time is determined by its
purpose and is usually carried out in two stages of ripening. The green fruits are destined to the
coconut water market, while mature fruits are destined to the dry coconut market (for meat, milk
and oil) (Martins et al). The estimated annual worldwide coconut production in 2015 was around
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55 million tons and the main producing countries are Brazil, India, Indonesia, the Philippines,
and Sri Lanka (FAOSTAT, 2013). However, 80 to 85% of the weight of the fruit is not used and
is simply discarded, resulting in large amount of waste (Montenegro et al., 2001). Possible
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METHODOLOGY
Research Design
The researchers will use experimental design in the study. The experimental design is
disproves a hypothesis with statistical analysis (Antonio, et al 2015). This study will use
alternative main ingredient in making bioethanol and to show the interpretation of data for the
The researchers will adapt a procedure that will be used for the conduction of their
experiment. All the methods were validated and adapted from previous studies and literature.
The coconut shells that will be used will be collected in the the vicinity of Concepcion,
Tarlac. The coconut shells will undergo pretreatment, where the recalcitrant structure of
pretreatment which is a widely studied chemical pretreatment method which is based on the
solubilization of lignin in the alkaline solution. The samples will also undergo dilute acid
hydrolysis in order to break down the cellulose and hemicellulose polymers in lignocellulosic
biomass to form individual sugar molecules which can be fermented into ethanol. (Sidiras and
Koukios, 2004). Fermentation will also be conducted where yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) is
added to the solution, and then fermented for days (5,7 and 9 days) (Oyeleke and Jibrin, 2009).
The last procedure is distillation which is the most dominant and recognized industrial
17
purification technique of ethanol (Oyeleke and Jibrin, 2009). Distillation setup will be used in
order to produce the bioethanol by distillation process that will be conducted in the laboratory.
Locale
The experimentation will be conducted at St. Jude Village, Concepcion, Tarlac and the
school laboratory of Benigno S. Aquino National High School, Senior High School Department,
Materials
Coconuts shells will be collected in the vicinity of Concepcion, Tarlac. Baking yeast
(Saccharomyces cerevisiae) will be used in this study. All chemicals that will be used in this
Pretreatment
The pretreatment of the samples will be carried out according to the methods described
by Jannah and Asip, (2015). 1500g of coconut shell will be cleaned until the excess coconut
fiber and coconut will be removed and will be washed with tap water in order to remove any
gross dirt and contamination. The samples will be washed again to ensure complete washing then
the samples will be gradually collected from the top until there was only a small fraction left in
the dirty water. The washed samples will then be sun-dried for 6 hours daily for a period of 1
week to reduce its moisture content and will be crushed and grounded into small pieces using a
mallet.
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Alkaline Pretreatment
The 1500g of dried grounded coconut shells will be immersed for 3 hours in solution of
Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH) with 35% concentration (Jannah and Asip, 2015). After that, the
coconut shells will be rinsed with distilled water and then sun-dried for 6 hours.
Acid Hydrolysis
100g of each dried pretreated coconut shell samples will be diluted with 200mL aqueous
into a glass beaker, will be adjusted 150mL of Sulfuric acid solution at concentration of 4%
(v/w) and will be heated to a temperature of 90℃ for 60 minutes with continuous stirring to
effect hydrolysis. Reaction of slurry with acid solution will be accelerated by additional heating.
Fermentation
Fermentation of the hydrolyzed samples will be carried out according to the methods
described by Oyeleke and Jibrin, (2009). 50g of yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) will be added
each into the slurry and stirred. Fermentation process will be done with various times (5, 7, and
9 days). The samples will be kept at a temperature of 27℃ which is the standard room
temperature.
Distillation
The slurry will be filtered out using a sieve to separate large particles from the solution
and will be filtered out again using a filter paper. The slurry will then be purified and distilled
19
using the distillation setup that will be conducted at the laboratory to separate the ethanol.
TESTING
Four sets of samples will be prepared. The three sets will be the distillate of the samples
fermented for 5,7, and 9 days and the fourth set is the ethanol labeled as the commercial one. The
samples will be compared in terms of the volume and density of ethanol produced during the
distillation process to determine any significant difference based on the fermentation time on
ethanol production. (Humphrey and Okafogu, 2007). The samples will also be tested in terms of
their color and combustibility and will be compared to the commercial one. (Pereira, Aleiferis
and Richardson, 2012). The color of the flame, smoke and the duration of the flame between the
The distillates that will be collected will be measured using a measuring cylinder, and
expressed as the quantity of bioethanol produced in g/L by multiplying the volume of the
distillates collected by the density of ethanol (0.8033g/mL) (Humphrey and Okafogu, 2007).
The measured volume from each sample will be weighed and divided by the volume
measured.
mass
Density
volume
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Combustion Test
The ethanol that will be separated during the distillation will be transferred to a large test
tube, added by a boiling chip, held with a test tube holder and will be heated until the liquid was
boiling. The open end of the test tube will be held to the flame and ignite the ethanol vapors.
Ethanol burns with a pale blue flame with no smoke. (American Herbal Products Association,
2017)
STATISTICAL TREATMENT
The data to be gathered during the experiment will be presented using series of tables
which will indicate any significant difference on the amount of volume produced during the
ethanol production based on the fermentation time from the 3 different fermented samples and to
compare the produced ethanol from the commercial one. To interpret the data effectively, the
This statistical treatment will be used to test the differences between the means of amount
of volume produced during the ethanol production based on the fermentation time from the 3
different fermented samples. ANOVA is used to compare the means between two or more
groups of values (Frontline Solvers, 2019). The analysis will help the researchers in making
comparison of two or more means which will enable them to draw various predictions about the
set of data.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
L. Veeranjaneya Reddy and O. Vijaya Sarathi Reddy, (2007) Production of Ethanol from Mango
Microbiology Volume 2
Mustafa Vohra, Jagdish Manwar, Rahul Manmode, Satish Padgilwarb, Sanjay Patila, (2014).
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1367593106000378
Renewable Fuels Association (2018). Ethanol and Marine Engines. Retrieved from
http://www.redfieldenergy.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/ethanol_and_marine.pdf
Bio resource Technology (2017) Science Direct: What is Fermentation. Retrieved from
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/fermentation
Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D. (2019). What is Fermentation Definition and Examples.
fermentation
https://www.thebalance.com/what-is-hydrolysis-375589
https://homeguides.sfgate.com/coconut-palm-trees-51610.html
Ramkumar Nair, (2017). New method makes bioethanol from waste -- in existing plants.
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Ashok Pandey, (2015). Pretreatment of Biomass. Retrieved from
https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-800080-9.01001-X
http://www.etipbioenergy.eu/value-chains/conversiontechnologies/ethanol-fermentation
Jannah and Asip, (2015) Bioethanol Production from Coconut Fiber using Alkaline
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/4a13/5aef5279f7def8e8854ae1eb123964b2b687.pdf
Pereira, Aleiferis and Richardson, (2012) An Analysis of the Combustion Behavior of Ethanol,
https://www.nap.edu/read/20284/chapter/8#79
https://www.solver.com/anova-single-factor
Hossain Zabed, (2013) Bioethanol Production from Fermentable Sugar Juice. Retrieved from.
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/tswj/2014/957102
American Herbal Products Association, (2017) Ethanol Identity Test Methods. Retrieved from.
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