A novel process for the complete and efficient acid-catalyzed exploitation of giant reed (Arundo donax
L.) was developed. Acid-catalyzed conversion of the hemicellulose and cellulose fractions allows to obtain
furfural and levulinic acid, two very interesting platform chemicals. The solid residue recovered at
the end of the process, that is mainly composed of lignin and degradation products of sugars (humins), can be
easily separated by filtration at the end of the reaction. This fraction has been employed for the formulation of
polyurethane foams, without any preliminary purification step, thus making the overall process economically
advantageous
