With stricter regulation and global ban on single-use plastics, both academy and industry are seeking bio-based feedstocks for green and sustainable processes for the synthesis of value-added chemicals and degradable polymers. Hydroxyl carboxylic acids have been widely used as monomers and plasticizers in chemical industry. The manufacture of those precursors are often involving energy intensive processes generating significant amounts of toxic compounds. There is a strong need to synthesize these promising alternative monomers in energy efficient way using cost-effective catalytic materials. In this talk, we will share three case studies, which our research team have been focused on in the past three years, on the synthesis of bio-derived hydroxyl carboxylic acids via selective dehydrogenation, hydrogenation and oxidation technologies using heterogeneous catalysts. Catalyst design for the synthesis of glucaric acid, xylaric acid, tartaric acid, lactic acid, etc will be discussed. More importantly, life cycle impact on the environment of the proposed green synthetic processes will be analyzed quantitatively. The outcome of this work is to provide insights into critical assessment of manufacture of bio-chemicals for future energy industry.

Towards selective synthesis of hydroxyl carboxylic acids from biomass: Catalyst design and process life cycle analysis

ACS Spring Meeting 2021

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