Avantium is developing a breakthrough technology YXY to convert plant-based sugars into chemical building blocks, like Furanics and Levulinics. Levulinics are known for more than one century, but until today have not been produced cost effectively and at high volumes. Expanding the capability of YXY technology platform, Avantium has developed a tunable process to convert plant-based carbohydrates into high purity Methyl Levulinate (ML). In the Levulinics family Levulinic Acid (LA) as well as ML can be used as building block for the production of many derivatives with a wide range of applications such as preservative in food industry and cosmetics (levulinate salts), in pharmaceuticals, as building blocks for ketals (plasticizers) and nylon intermediates, as fuel component/ additive (ML) as well as potential replacement for tetrahydrofuran (THF), a common organic solvent obtained by dehydration of petroleum derived 1,4 butandiol (by renewable MTHF as ML derivative). In this presentation particular attention will be given to the technical and economical aspects to be taken into account for the production, use and commercialization of ML and its derivatives.

Levulinics: Novel sustainable building blocks for renewable formulations

248th National Meeting (2014)

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