Pre-treatment of cellulosic material

摘要

A method of pre-treating a cellulosic material before hydrolysis is provided. The method comprises the steps of: impregnating the cellulosic material with a reactive water-soluble gas, such as sulphur dioxide (SO 2 ) or carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), in an impregnation chamber to obtain impregnated material; and heating the impregnated material to obtain pre-treated material, wherein the cellulosic material is compressed right before or when it is transferred to the impregnation chamber. A corresponding system is also provided.