Utilization of guaiacol-based deep eutectic solvent for achieving a sustainable biorefinery

Chen Huang; Jinyuan Cheng; Yunni Zhan; Xuze Liu; Jia Wang; Yunxuan Wang; Chang Geun Yoo; Guigan Fang; Xianzhi Meng; Arthur J Ragauskas; Xueping Song

doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2022.127771

Utilization of guaiacol-based deep eutectic solvent for achieving a sustainable biorefinery

Bioresour Technol. 2022 Oct:362:127771. doi: 10.1016/j.biortech.2022.127771. Epub 2022 Aug 11.

Authors

Chen Huang¹, Jinyuan Cheng², Yunni Zhan², Xuze Liu², Jia Wang³, Yunxuan Wang⁴, Chang Geun Yoo⁴, Guigan Fang², Xianzhi Meng⁵, Arthur J Ragauskas⁶, Xueping Song⁷

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Jiangsu Province Key Laboratory of Biomass Energy and Materials, Nanjing 210042, China; Co-Innovation Center for Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China; Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA.
² Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Products, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Jiangsu Province Key Laboratory of Biomass Energy and Materials, Nanjing 210042, China.
³ Co-Innovation Center for Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China.
⁴ Department of Chemical Engineering, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY 13210-2781, USA.
⁵ Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA. Electronic address: xmeng5@utk.edu.
⁶ Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA; Department of Forestry, Wildlife, and Fisheries, Center for Renewable Carbon, The University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA; UTK-ORNL Joint Institute for Biological Science, Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA.
⁷ Guangxi Key Laboratory of Clean Pulp & Papermaking and Pollution Control, College of Light Industry and Food Engineering, Guangxi University, Nanning 530004, China.

PMID: 35964916
DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2022.127771

Abstract

This study proposed a renewable deep eutectic solvent (DES) pretreatment using lignin-derived guaiacol as the hydrogen bond donor. The DES showed excellent biomass fractionation efficiency after the incorporation of trace AlCl₃ as the reinforcer, which removed 79.1 % lignin while preserving more than 90 % glucan. The pretreated bamboo exhibited 96.2 % glucan enzymatic hydrolysis yield at only 110 °C. The physicochemical properties of the pretreated solids were comprehensively investigated to explain how the DES fractionation overcame the biomass recalcitrance. The regenerated lignin from the DES pretreatment was also analyzed, which revealed that lignin β-O-4 bond was significantly cleaved. This guaiacol-based DES could greatly contribute to establish a closed-loop biorefinery sequence with high lignin fractionation efficiency and great solvent recyclability.

Keywords: DES; Enzymatic hydrolysis; Guaiacol; Lignin.

MeSH terms

Biomass
Deep Eutectic Solvents*
Guaiacol
Hydrolysis
Lignin* / chemistry
Solvents / chemistry

Substances

Deep Eutectic Solvents
Solvents
Guaiacol
Lignin