Biorefining Twin Transition: Digitalisation for Bio-based Chemicals/Materials - Discovery, Design and Optimisation

The article discusses the production of platform chemicals from various biological sources, including glycerol, lignin, cellulose, bio-oils, and sea products. It presents the results of catalytic and downstream processes involved in the conversion of these biomass-derived feedstocks. The experimental approaches are complemented by numerical descriptions, ranging from density functional theory (DFT) calculations to kinetic modellingof the experimental data. This multi-scale modelling approach helps to understand the underlying mechanisms and optimize the production of platform chemicals from renewable resources

Ambient-Pressured Acid-Catalysed Ethylene Glycol Organosolv Process: Liquefaction Structure–Activity Relationships from Model Cellulose–Lignin Mixtures to Lignocellulosic Wood Biomass

Raising the awareness of carbon dioxide emissions, climate global warming and fossil fuel depletion has renewed the transition towards a circular economy approach, starting by addressing active bio-economic precepts that all portion amounts of wood are valorised as products. This is accomplished by minimizing residues formed (preferably no waste materials), maximizing reaction productivity yields, and optimising catalysed chemical by-products. Within framework structure determination, the present work aims at drawing a parallel between the characterisation of cellulose–lignin mixture (derived system model) liquefaction and real conversion process in the acidified ethylene glycol at moderate process conditions, i.e., 150 °C, ambient atmospheric pressure and potential bio-based solvent, for 4 h. Extended-processing liquid phase is characterized considering catalyst-transformed reactant species being produced, mainly recovered lignin-based polymer, by quantitative 31P, 13C and 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, as well as the size exclusion- (SEC) or high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) separation for higher or lower molecular weight compound compositions, respectively. Such mechanistic pathway analytics help to understand the steps in mild organosolv biopolymer fractionation, which is one of the key industrial barriers preventing a more widespread manufacturing of the biomass-derived (hydroxyl, carbonyl or carboxyl) aromatic monomers or oligomers for polycarbonates, polyesters, polyamides, polyurethanes and (epoxy) resins

Organosolv lignin barrier paper coatings from waste biomass resources

The aim of the study was to isolate lignin from organosolv, beech tree (Fagus sylvatica), and Japanese knotweed (Reynoutria japonica), to use it for paper surface and to replace part of the non-renewable product resources with bio-based ones. A total of nine coated samples with different lignin formulations and starch were compounded, prepared, and evaluated. The basic (grammage, thickness, specific density), mechanical (elongation at break, tensile, burst and tear indices), and barrier properties (contact angle, water penetration, water vapour permeability, kit test) of the coated papers were investigated. The analysis showed no significant difference in tensile properties between uncoated and coated samples. Furthermore, the decrease in water vapour transmission rate and the lower contact angle for coated samples were nevertheless confirmed. The novel coating materials show promising products with very good barrier properties. Finally, the correlation between structural, morphological, and (other) natural lignin-based factors was revealed, highlighting the importance of parameters such as the equivalence ratio of aliphatic and phenolic hydroxyl groups or the average molecular weight. Tuning functionality by design could optimise performance in the future