Reed was pretreated with liquid hot water (LHW) and then subjected to fed-batch semi-simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (S-SSF) to obtain high ethanol concentration and yield. Results show that water-insoluble solid (WIS) produced from reed pretreated at 180 and 210 degrees C could be effectively converted to ethanol by using Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The optimum conditions for bio-ethanol production are as follows: fermentation temperature of 36 degrees C, pH of 4.8 with cellulase loading of 40 filter paper activity units/g oven-dried WIS, and 18 h pre-hydrolysis at 50 degrees C. Approximately 6.4% (w/v) fed-batch substrate was added after 6 h of the 18 h enzymatic pre-hydrolysis. The highest ethanol concentration of 39.4 g/L was achieved. The conversion of glucan in the WIS to ethanol reached 79.1% (180 degrees C) and 75.1% (210 degrees C) respectively. The ethanol yields per kg of oven-dried reed were 283 g/L at 180 degrees C and 244 g/L at 210 degrees C. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.