Novel Intensified Alternatives for Purification of Levulinic Acid Recovered from Lignocellulosic Biomass

Abstract

The development of a bio-based economy has its foundations in the development of efficient processes to optimize biomass potential. In this context there are a multitude of molecules that can be either synthetized or recovered from biomass, among those the so-called 12 building-blocks reported by the US Department of Energy. Even if their identification and importance is clearly defined, research efforts concerning the purification or separation of these platform molecules are limited. To fill this gap, different configurations for the purification of levulinic acid recovered from lignocellulosic biomass are examined and compared in this work. In particular, hybrid configurations obtained by the combination of liquid-liquid extraction and distillation have been considered. It was demonstrated how a deep understanding of the subspace including all extraction-assisted simple column distillation configurations represents a fundamental step in the synthesis of different process alternatives. From a separation efficiency and economic standpoint, the proposed intensified liquid-liquid thermally equivalent configuration (LL-TE) and liquid-liquid side stream column configuration (LL-SSC) are promising solutions. Nonetheless, their performances are deeply interrelated to the purity target defined by the designer.

Recent advances, perspectives and challenges on levulinic acid production from residual biomass

“…Intensified processes are versatile and can be implemented differently, combining functions and equipment in the same unit or integrating materials and energy 63 . These processes are alternatives intended for the configuration of reduced equipment but need to offer the same performance as the traditional configuration, with less energy consumption and invested capital 64 …”

“…63 These processes are alternatives intended for the configuration of reduced equipment but need to offer the same performance as the traditional configuration, with less energy consumption and invested capital. 64 Owing to the stability of LA, the enhancement of the biphasic reaction can be explored and present promising and innovative results. For example, it is possible to mention the study of Licursi et al that evaluated the hydrolysis catalyzed by sulfuric acid of corn grains for LA in a biphasic mineral oil and water system.…”

Special Issue on “Thermal Safety of Chemical Processes”

“…It is essential to understand the separation process. In this Special Issue, Errico et al [12] proposed an intensified alternatives for the purification of levulinic acid from lignocellulosic biomass.…”