ENERGY POTENTIALS OF SWITCH GRASS (Panicum Virgatum) FOR BIO-ETHANOL PRODUCTION

The release of greenhouse gas emission, climatic change, environmental degradation, rising
cost and scarcity of fossil fuel has been a concern to the government and researchers. The
negative impact of the gasoline has prompted to seeking for alternative source of energy that is
renewable, environmentally friendly, and attractive for sustainable development. Bioethanol
has emerge has the most promising alternative to gasoline, affordable and reduce dependence
on traditional fuel and compensate for fuel scarcity. This research was carried out to study the
potential of switch grass (panicum virgatum) as a suitable feedstock for bioethanol production.
Switch grass, a lignocellulosic biomass was collected and treated. The chemical composition of
the grass was carried out to identify the potentials of the grass as a viable resources for better
yield of sugars. The results revealed 39.42±0.52% cellulose content, hemicelluloses content
20.25±0.01%, lignin content 11.22±0.62%, ash content 2.30±0.34%, and moisture content
28.64%. The results of the analysis indicates that switch grass has a high viability for sugar
yield and its sustainability for bioethanol production.