Biomass as an alternative feedstock to oleochemicals

• Published in: RSC advances 2024-09, Vol.14 (39), p.28827-28843
• Main Authors: Rahmawati, Zeni, Santoso, Liangga, Abdullah, Wan Nazwanie Wan, Hamid, Abdul, Jamari, Nor Laili Azua, Sugiarso, Djarot, Ni'mah, Yatim Lailun, Widati, Alfa Akustia
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Alcohols; Biomass; Chemical properties; Chemistry; Emissions; Esters; Fatty acids; Raw materials
• ISSN: 2046-2069; 2046-2069
• DOI: 10.1039/d4ra04481a

The huge demands for petrochemicals have led to a rapid increase in the production of these fossil-based derivatives. Biomass represents a promising feedstock for addressing the challenges related to petrochemicals in terms of the necessity to apply renewable sources and the need to decrease carbon emissions. Among the natural biomass products, most studies have attempted to upgrade natural oils owing to their promising advantages of worldwide availability, low-cost processing, and built-in functionality. This paper discusses the upgradation of natural oils to the most beneficial oleochemicals, including fatty acids, fatty alcohols, and fatty acid methyl esters. This review also covers the utility, physico-chemical properties, and the production processes for such materials. The interconnected reaction routes to produce oleochemicals and the affecting parameters (catalyst design, temperature, and pressure) are also elucidated. Furthermore, this article discusses the future perspective of oleochemicals based on their development in recent years. Biomass upgrade to oleochemicals as petrochemical substitutes, including the utility, physical-chemical properties, reaction routes, affecting parameters and the future forecast.