Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L) is considered to be one of the best feedstocks for second generation ethanol production. However, its use as a biofuel resource for the ethanol market is challenged by high investment costs and inconsistent production methodologies. This study explores the use of switchgrass as a potential feedstock for ethanol production, investigating the effects of different pretreatment chemicals sodium hydroxide, methanol, sulphuric acid and ammonia - employed at various concentrations of 0.5, 1 and 2 mol L-1 on conversion yields, while also minimising cost and assessing potential environmental impacts. Glucose and ethanol yields showed that methanol was the most effective pretreatment chemical at 1 mol L-1, producing 230 g of glucose and 340 cm(3) of ethanol kg(-1) of feedstock with a 97% conversion rate. Pretreatment employing sodium hydroxide was found to be the least effective, with cellulose to glucose conversion rates of 38% and 62% following simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF). In general, SSF significantly increased cellulose conversion rates, up to 32% for some samples. At 0.55 (sic) kg(-1) glucose and 0.50 (sic) L-1 ethanol methanol was also found to be the most cost effective pretreatment technique compared to sodium hydroxide at 1.96 (sic) kg(-1) glucose and 7.94 (sic) L-1 ethanol. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.