Fig. 1

Flowchart of sample treatment and analyses carried out. The steam exploded wood chips were transferred from the collection vessel to plastic buckets and allowed to cool, and pH measurements were taken once the slurry reached room temperature. Water was then added to aid extraction. Samples were mixed and transferred to funnels laid with Whatman B1 filters. Aliquots of this filtrate were used for quantification of acetate content, total carbohydrate content and reducing sugars. Samples of the filtrate were freeze-dried and used for monosaccharide composition analysis and analysis of lignin by NMR. SE wood retained by the filters was dried at 100 °C for 36–48 h, until steady weight was reached. Samples of dried extracted wood were used for monosaccharide composition and enzymatic hydrolysis