Abstract
Lignin is identified as a promising candidate in renewable energy and bioproduct manufacturing due to its high abundance, polymeric structure, and biochemical properties of monomers. Thus, emerging opportunities exist in generating high-value small molecules from lignin through depolymerization. This review aims at providing an overview of the major technologies of lignin depolymerization. The feasibility of large-scale implementation of these technologies, including thermal, biological, and chemical depolymerizations, are discussed in relation to potential industrial applications. Lignin as a renewable alternative to petroleum-based chemicals has been well documented. This review attempts to emphasize potential applications of lignin-derived monomers and their derivatives as bioactives in food, natural health product, and pharmaceutical sectors. The critical review of the prospects and challenges of lignin-derived bioproducts reveals that the advancement of research and development is required to explore the applications of depolymerization of lignins to their full potential.
Highlights
In the contexts of population expansion, climate change, resource depletion, and industrial development, biomass has received great interest as an attractive renewable resource for biofuel, biomaterial, and value-added chemicals production
Compared to severe thermal depolymerization and low-efficient biological depolymerization, chemical treatment of lignin has better control over the reaction and contributes to high product selectivity, which helps to unlock the full potential of lignin for renewable fuels and value-added chemicals production (Wang et al, 2013)
It has been proved that the combination of MW irradiation, catalysts, and organic solvents is capable of efficient lignin depolymerization, more efforts are required to develop low-cost or non-toxic catalysts and to optimize the conversion processes for large-scale production of ligninderived products, especially for nutraceutical and pharmaceutical applications
Summary
In the contexts of population expansion, climate change, resource depletion, and industrial development, biomass has received great interest as an attractive renewable resource for biofuel, biomaterial, and value-added chemicals production. Compared to severe thermal depolymerization (especially gasification and pyrolysis) and low-efficient biological depolymerization, chemical treatment of lignin has better control over the reaction and contributes to high product selectivity, which helps to unlock the full potential of lignin for renewable fuels and value-added chemicals production (Wang et al, 2013).
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