Patent ID: 8030030

Claim:
A method for treating a lignocellulosic biomass comprising the steps of: incubating a lignocellulosic biomass comprising lignin, cellulose, and hemicellulose in an ionic liquid (IL) for a sufficient time and temperature to swell the cellulose and hemicellulose by without dissolution of the biomass in the IL; washing the IL-incubated biomass comprising lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose with a liquid non-solvent for cellulose that is miscible with water and the IL; and contacting said swelled washed biomass comprising lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose with an aqueous buffer comprising enzymes capable of hydrolyzing both cellulose and hemicellulose to produce polysaccharides, and converting said polysaccharides to hexose and pentose sugars.