Hydrolysis of Polysaccharides - from Arabinogalactan to Monomers

The reaction rate increased with temperature. The hydrolysis rate of AG at temperatures lower than 70 °C was very slow. At 80 °C, only complete release of arabinose was achieved, but partially hydrolyzed galactose residue was left. The conversion of AG was 43%. A complete conversion of AG to monomers was achieved at 90 and 100 °C. After the hydrolysis at 100 °C, traces of degradation products such as furfural were observed. For this reason, the temperature for AG hydrolysis shall not exceed 100 °C. 

Hydrogenation of a Carbonyl Croup - from Sugars to Sugar Alcohols 

Hydrogenation of the carbonyl group of a mono- or disaccharide gives the corresponding sugar alcohol. On paper, this reaction is simple, and it can schematically be written as O 

However, the pattern is complicated by several factors. The sugar molecules to be hydrogenated mutarotate in aqueous solutions thus coexisting as acyclic aldehydes and ketoses and as cyclic pyranoses and furanoses and reaction kinetics are complicated and involve side reactions, such as isomerization, hydrolysis, and oxidative dehydrogenation reactions. Moreover, catalysts deactivate and external and internal mass transfer limitations interfere with the kinetics, particularly under industrial circumstances. 

Catalytic hydrogenation is typically carried out in slurry reactors, where finely dispersed catalyst particles ( 100 (tm) are immersed in a dispersion of gas and liquid. It has, however, been demonstrated that continuous operation is possible, either by using trickle bed [24] or monoHth technologies [37]. Elevated pressures and temperatures are needed to have a high enough reaction rate. On the other hand, too high a temperature impairs the selectivity of the desired product, as has been demonstrated by Kuusisto et al. [23]. An overview of some feasible processes and catalysts is shown in Table 8.1. 

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