Significantly enhanced enzymatic hydrolysis of waste rice hull through a novel surfactant-based deep eutectic solvent pretreatment

•A new treatment was developed using DES made with acetic acid and surfactant CTAB.•Xylan and lignin in waste rice hull (RCH) was effectively eliminated by [AA][CTAB].•[AA][CTAB] improved enzymatic saccharification by 3.7 times compared to raw RCH.•The increased accessibility and decreased surface area of lignin was found on treated RCH.•Improved saccharification was interpreted via various characterizations.