Fractionation of Organosolv Lignin from Olive Tree Clippings and its Valorization to Simple Phenolic Compounds

Lignin valorization practices have attracted a great deal of interest in recent years due to the large excess of lignin produced by the pulp and paper industry, together with second‐generation bioethanol plants. In this work, a new lignin valorization approach is proposed. It involves ultrafiltratio...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:ChemSusChem 2013-03, Vol.6 (3), p.529-536
Main Authors: Toledano, Ana, Serrano, Luis, Balu, Alina Mariana, Luque, Rafael, Pineda, Antonio, Labidi, Jalel
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biofuels
biomass
depolymerization
Fractionation
heterogeneous catalysis
hydrogenolysis
Lignin - chemistry
Olea - chemistry
Phenols - chemistry
Polymerization
Pulp & paper industry
Solvents - chemistry
ultrafiltration
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Lignin valorization practices have attracted a great deal of interest in recent years due to the large excess of lignin produced by the pulp and paper industry, together with second‐generation bioethanol plants. In this work, a new lignin valorization approach is proposed. It involves ultrafiltration as a fractionation process to separate different molecular weight lignin fractions followed by a hydrogen‐free, mild, hydrogenolytic, heterogeneously catalyzed methodology assisted by microwave irradiation to obtain simple phenolic, monomeric products by depolymerization using a nickel‐based catalyst. The main products obtained were desaspidinol, syringaldehyde, and syringol; this proves the efficiency of the depolymerization conditions applied. The concentration of these observed compounds increased when the molecular weights of the lignin fractions increased. The applied depolymerization conditions, which take advantage of the use of formic acid as a hydrogen‐donating solvent, did not generate any biochar in the systems. Value‐added waste: A new lignin valorization approach is proposed that involves ultrafiltration as a fractionation process to separate different molecular weight (MW) lignin fractions followed by a hydrogen‐free, mild, hydrogenolytic, heterogeneously catalyzed methodology (see picture; NP=nanoparticle).
ISSN:1864-5631
1864-564X
DOI:10.1002/cssc.201200755