In order to assess the suitability of autohydrolysis as a first biorefinery stage, Acacia dealbata wood samples were heated in aqueous media to a range of 170-240 degrees C. Under selected operational conditions (maximum temperature, 215 degrees C), 70% xylan was converted into xylooligosaccharides, whereas cellulose and lignin remained in solid phase with little alteration. The spent solids from treatments contained 65% cellulose L (measured as glucan), 8% hemicelluloses, and 27% lignin. Kinetic models describing the Acacia dealbata wood solubilization as well as the autohydrolysis of the polysaccharide fractions (glucan, xylan, and arabinosyl and acetyl substituents of hemicelluloses) were developed. All the models considered sequential, first-order, pseudohomogeneous kinetics, with Arrhenius type dependence on temperature, and provided I satisfactory interpretation of experimental data.