Determination of Cellulose in Straw Holocellulose

Hydrolysis of wheat, oat, rye, and flax holocelluloses with 0.5% sulphuric acid for one hour at 100 °C. gave a residue that was quantitatively equal to the Cross and Bevan cellulose from the same straws. The hydrolyzed holocellulose residue contained more lignin and less pentosan than the corresponding Cross and Bevan cellulose but 'pure' cellulose contents (cellulose corrected for ash, lignin, and pentosan) were very similar for both materials; the α-cellulose contents for the two fractions were also equivalent and were slightly higher than the 'pure' cellulose. The α-cellulose contents of the holocellulose were higher than either the Cross and Bevan cellulose or the hydrolyzed holocellulose residue when calculated on the basis of the original straw. The hydrolysis method has the advantage of permitting consecutive determination of holocellulose, cellulose, and α-cellulose on the same sample of straw.