Production of Levulinic Acid and <em>n</em>-Butyl Levulinate from the Waste Biomasses Grape Pomace and <em>Cynara Cardunculus </em>L.

Abstract

Nowadays, the transformation of lignocellulosic biomass into added-value products, such as bio-based platform chemicals and fuels, is attracting great attention. In this research, the acidcatalyzed hydrolysis of waste grape pomace and Cynara Cardunculus L. (cardoon), remained after wine and oil exploitation respectively, to levulinic acid was investigated. The grape pomace residue was employed as received, whereas the cardoon one was used both as received and after the steam explosion treatment, becoming enriched in cellulose. Since waste biomasses are low value materials, this investigation was performed adopting the High Gravity approach, using biomass loadings as higher as possible in order to achieve the maximum product concentration in the hydrolyzates, while maintaining an appreciable yield. Under the optimized reaction conditions, starting from grape pomace residue, the levulinic acid yield and concentration of 49.5 mol% and 8.5 g/L were reached respectively, whereas, from pre-treated cardoon residue, levulinic acid yields and concentrations up to 53 mol% and 62 g/L were attained, highlighting cardoon as the most suitable feedstock. On this basis, one-pot alcoholysis of pre-treated cardoon in n-butanol to n-butyl levulinate was successfully performed. In summary, waste cardoon resulted a promising feedstock for the sustainable production of both levulinic acid and alkyl levulinates, paving the way towards a circular economy.

Fruit pomace-lignin as a sustainable biopolymer for biomedical applications

“…The study was able to show that the valorization of grape pomace had the potential to present significant economic benefits with a scaled-up pomace valorization plant characterized by a net present value of US$ 111.7 ×10 6 . Other studies have investigated WP conversion to valuable chemicals such as Poly(3-Hydroxybutyrate-co-3-Hydroxyvalerate), xylitol, polyhydroxyalkanoates, levulinic acid, and n-Butyl levulinate (Antonetti et al, 2020;Kovalcik et al, 2020;López-Linares et al, 2020;Martinez et al, 2016). Based on the studies presented above, the valorization of WP has so far focused on the optimized recovery of carbohydrate forms before their conversion to bioproducts (i.e.…”

Three-Dimensional Printing of Hydroxyapatite Composites for Biomedical Application

“…These properties may however be altered/improved via its combination with HA [38,50,68]. BCP has been used to fabricate bone graft materials for 30 years; BCP-based ceramics have proven efficacy in clinical indications [244,245]. Although many 3D printing approaches could be used to fabricate complex BCP-based ceramics, including inkjet printing, SLA, selective laser sintering, and DLP, the performance of BCP and BCP-based ceramics and their printable properties as bio-inks need to be further viewed [246].…”

“…Huang et al [247] fabricated porous BCP ceramics using extrusion-based 3D printing with a motor-assisted micro-syringe (MAM) system; the morphology, pore size, and porosity of printed BCP scaffolds could be precisely controlled to optimize their mechanical properties [247]. Li et al [244] obtained BCP scaffolds with a complex geometric structure using a slurry-based microscale mask image projection SLA. The BCP-based photocurable suspension with complex geometry was obtained first.…”

“…After that, the curing performance and physical properties of BCP suspension were investigated to optimize the scaffold composite. The printed BCP scaffold presented excellent biocompatibility, as well as possessed sufficient mechanical strength compared to a long bone for surgery [244]. Wang et al printed BCP scaffolds using inkjet 3D printing; 0.6 wt.% PVA solution and 0.25 wt.% Tween 80 were used as a binder to prepare BCP bio-ink.…”