Abstract
Lignin is one of the three main components of lignocellulosic biomass and must be considered a raw material with attractive applications from an economic and ecological point of view. Therefore, biorefineries must have in mind the most adequate processing to obtain high-quality lignin and the separation tasks that play a key role to improve the purity of the lignin. Separation techniques based on membranes are a promising way to achieve these requirements. In this work, the separation performance of the SILM (Supported Ionic Liquid Membrane) formed with [BMIM][DBP] as IL (Ionic Liquid) and PTFE as membrane support was compared to a nanofiltration (NF) membrane (NP010 by Microdyn-Nadir) and two ultrafiltration (UF) membranes (UF5 and UF10 by Trisep). The SILM showed selective transport of Kraft lignin, lignosulphonate, xylose, and glucose in aqueous solutions. Although it was stable under different conditions and its performance was improved by the integration of agitation, it was not competitive when compared to NF and UF membranes, although the latter ones suffered fouling. The NF membrane was the best alternative for the separation of lignosulphonates from monosaccharides (separation factors around 75 while SILM attained only values lower than 3), while the UF5 membrane should be selected to separate Kraft lignin and monosaccharides (separation factors around 100 while SILM attained only values below 3).
Highlights
The sustainable management of forest resources is a great opportunity to avoid deforestation and forest degradation while obtaining direct benefits for people in those rural areas, which complement additional benefits for the environment
The chemical transformation of lignocellulosic raw materials produces a large variety of renewable chemical compounds, which could be directly used as chemicals or considered as building blocks for the synthesis of other valuable substances [5]
The main objective of this work was the analysis of the technical applicability of the previously identified selective supported ionic liquid membranes (SILMs) for the separation of lignin (Kraft lignin and lignosulphonate) and monosaccharides
Summary
The sustainable management of forest resources is a great opportunity to avoid deforestation and forest degradation while obtaining direct benefits for people in those rural areas, which complement additional benefits for the environment. Exploited forests must provide the balance between biodiversity preservation and income generation through forest products and services [1,2]. Among these forest products, wood must be highlighted. Mechanical transformation products derived from wood are called to replace non-renewable materials in the building industry and furniture manufacture [4]. The chemical transformation of lignocellulosic raw materials produces a large variety of renewable chemical compounds, which could be directly used as chemicals or considered as building blocks for the synthesis of other valuable substances [5]
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