A simple process for the production of fuel additives using residual lignocellulosic biomass

Maricelly Martínez Aguilar (1, 2) , Xavier Duret (1) , Thierry Ghislain (1) , Doan Pham Minh (2) , Ange Nzihou (2) , Jean-Michel Lavoie (2, 1)

1 UdeS - Université de Sherbrooke
2 RAPSODEE - Centre de recherche d'Albi en génie des procédés des solides divisés, de l'énergie et de l'environnement

In this work, the direct production of levulinates from cheap residual lignocellulosic biomass was performed using an affordable homogeneous catalyst. A central composite design (CCD) using the response surface methodology (RSM) was applied to analyze the effects of the four selected factors (acid concentration, temperature, α-cellulose content, and reaction time) on the production of levulinates (levulinic acid derivatives). This optimization led to a total production of levulinates of 78 wt%, 72.5 wt%, 83 wt%, and 73 wt% using α-cellulose, poplar, sorghum, and softwood bark, respectively.

Mots clés: Methyl levulinate; Sorghum residual biomass; Cellulose; Homogeneous catalyst; Levulinic acid; Platform chemicals; Softwood bark; Hardwood sawdust; Fuel additives

Domaines: Sciences de l'ingénieur [physics]

Maricelly Martínez Aguilar, Xavier Duret, Thierry Ghislain, Doan Pham Minh, Ange Nzihou, et al.. A simple process for the production of fuel additives using residual lignocellulosic biomass. Fuel, 2020, 264, pp.116702. ⟨10.1016/j.fuel.2019.116702⟩. ⟨hal-02432418⟩