The hydrolysis of degreased cotton in formic acid has been studied in this paper. Hydrochloric acid isadded as a catalyst. The crystalline index of degreased cotton decreases gradually with the increase in treatmenttime. The effects of the reaction temperature (from 55 to 65
C) and reaction time (from 2 to 9 h) on hydrolysishave been evaluated. The hydrolysis of cellulose and degradation of glucose increase with the increases inreaction time and temperature. The optimal conditions for the hydrolysis of degreased cotton is found to be at65
C for 5 h. Under the optimal conditions, 23% of the degreased cotton is turned into glucose. The maximumtransformation ratio of degreased cotton to reducing sugars is 32%.