Biorefinery platform chemicals from lignocellulosic

Design Strategies for Integration of Biorefinery Concepts at Existing Industrial Process Sites Case Study of a Biorefinery Producing Ethylene from Lignocellulosic Feedstock as an Intermediate Platform for a Chemical Cluster... 

As discussed in detail in Chapter 1 [1], the chemical-catalytic approach to biomass valorization is poised to come to the fore of biorefinery operations due to its advantages over microbial and thermochemical processing of lignocellulosic feedstocks. Below, we consider three mainstream platform chemicals, collectively referred to as furanics, that are derived from the acid-catalyzed dehydration of carbohydrates. The first, 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfural, or HMF 1, is an icon of the biorefinery movement. With derivatives that branch out over multiple product manifolds, HMF is a recognized commercial opportunity for whoever can manage to produce it economically, and approaches towards the realization of this aim will be discussed. 

This chapter is organized into three sections, apart from this introduction. The first section surveys in detail various feedstock that can be obtained from the forests and their lignocellulosic composition. Various classifications of forest-based feedstocks and their useful fermentation products are also discussed here. The second section presents the application of forest-based feedstocks in light of biorefinery and platform chemical production. To better understand the relationship between feedstock requirements and decreases in forest cover, a detailed analysis of land occupied by each forest-based feedstock will also be presented. The final section provides conclusions and suitable remedial measures to minimize deforestation due to biorefinery. 

This chapter surveys different process options to convert terpenes, plant oils, carbohydrates and lignocellulosic materials into valuable chemicals and polymers. Three different strategies of conversion processes integrated in a biorefinery scheme are proposed from biomass to bioproducts via degraded molecules , from platform molecules to bioproducts , and from biomass to bioproducts via new synthesis routes . Selected examples representative of the three options are given. Attention is focused on conversions based on one-pot reactions involving one or several catalytic steps that could be used to replace conventional synthetic routes developed for hydrocarbons. 

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