Impact of Different Lignin Fractions on Saccharification Efficiency in Diverse Species of the Bioenergy Crop Miscanthus

Lignin is a key factor limiting saccharification of lignocellulosic feedstocks. In this comparative study, various lignin methods—including acetyl bromide lignin (ABL), acid detergent lignin (ADL), Klason lignin (KL), and modified ADL and KL determination methods—were evaluated for their potential to assess saccharification efficiency. Six diverse accessions of the bioenergy crop miscanthus were used for this analysis, which included accessions of Miscanthus sinensis, Miscanthus sacchariflorus, and hybrid species. Accessions showed large variation in lignin content. Lignin estimates were different between methods, but (highly) correlated to each other (0.54 ≤ r ≤ 0.94). The strength of negative correlations to saccharification efficiency following either alkaline or dilute acid pretreatment differed between lignin estimates. The strongest and most consistent correlations (−0.48 ≤ r ≤ −0.85) were obtained with a modified Klason lignin method. This method is suitable for high throughput analysis and was the most effective in detecting differences in lignin content (p < 0.001) between accessions.