Manufacture Of High-value Products Research Articles

Solvent Free Upgrading of 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) with Levulinic Acid to HMF Levulinate Using Tin Exchanged Tungstophosphoric Acid Supported on K-10 Catalyst.

The manufacture of high-value products from biomass derived platform chemicals is becoming an integral part of the biorefinery industry. In this study, we demonstrate a green catalytic process using solvent free conditions for the synthesis of hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) levulinate from HMF and levulinic acid (LA) over tin exchanged tungstophosphoric acid (DTP) supported on K-10 (montmorillonite K-10 clay) as the catalyst. The structural properties of solid acid catalysts were characterized by using XRD, FT-IR, UV-vis, titration, and SEM techniques. Partial exchange of the H+ of DTP with Sn (x = 1) resulted in enhanced acidity of the catalyst and showed an increase in the catalytic activity as compared to the unsubstituted DTP/K-10 as the catalyst. The effects of different reaction parameters were studied and optimized to get high yields of HMF levulinate. The kinetic model was developed by considering the Langmuir-Hinshelwood-Hougen-Watson (LHHW) mechanism, and the activation energy was calculated to be 41.2 kJ mol-1. The prepared catalysts were easily recycled up to four times without any noticeable loss of activity, and hot filtration test indicated the heterogeneous nature of the catalytic activity. The overall process is environmentally benign and suitable for easy scale up.

A Critical Review on Recycling Composite Waste Using Pyrolysis for Sustainable Development

The rising usage of carbon and glass fibers has raised awareness of scrap management options. Every year, tons of composite scrap containing precious carbon and glass fibers accumulate from numerous sectors. It is necessary to recycle them efficiently, without harming the environment. Pyrolysis seems to be a realistic and promising approach, not only for efficient recovery, but also for high-quality fiber production. In this paper, the essential characteristics of the pyrolysis process, their influence on fiber characteristics, and the use of recovered fibers in the creation of a new composite are highlighted. Pyrolysis, like any other recycling process, has several drawbacks, the most problematic of which is the probability of char development on the resultant fiber surface. Due to the char, the mechanical characteristics of the recovered fibers may decrease substantially. Chemically treating and post-heating the fibers both help to reduce char formation, but only to a limited degree. Thus, it was important to identify the material cost reductions that may be achieved using recovered carbon fibers as structural reinforcement, as well as the manufacture of high-value products using recycled carbon fibers on a large scale. Recycled fibers are cheaper than virgin fibers, but they inherently vary from them as well. This has hampered the entry of recycled fiber into the virgin fiber industry. Based on cost and performance, the task of the current study was to modify the material in such a way that virgin fiber was replaced with recycled fiber. In order to successfully modify the recycling process, a regulated optimum temperature and residence duration in post-pyrolysis were advantageous.

The Use of Life Cycle Assessment in the Support of the Development of Fungal Food Products from Surplus Bread

The use of food waste as feedstock in the manufacture of high-value products is a promising avenue to contribute to circular economy. Considering that the majority of environmental impacts of products are determined in the early phases of product development, it is crucial to integrate life cycle assessment during these phases. This study integrates environmental considerations in the development of solid-state fermentation based on the cultivation of N. intermedia for the production of a fungal food product using surplus bread as a substrate. The product can be sold as a ready-to-eat meal to reduce waste while generating additional income. Four inoculation scenarios were proposed, based on the use of bread, molasses, and glucose as substrate, and one scenario based on backslopping. The environmental performance was assessed, and the quality of the fungal product was evaluated in terms of morphology and protein content. The protein content of the fungal food product was similar in all scenarios, varying from 25% to 29%. The scenario based on backslopping showed the lowest environmental impacts while maintaining high protein content. The results show that the inoculum production and the solid-state fermentation are the two environmental hotspots and should be in focus when optimizing the process.

High-value products from food waste: An environmental and socio-economic assessment

The use of food waste as feedstock in the manufacture of high-value products is considered a promising avenue for achieving (bio)circular economy goals. The use of residual biomass helps decrease fossil fuel dependency whilst simultaneously reducing the demand for additional biomass resource. Despite the interest in exploiting food waste in high-value product manufacturing, few studies assess the sustainability of such applications. In this study a life cycle assessment, a conventional and a societal life cycle costing were performed to evaluate the impacts of five standalone case studies based on wet animal feed, protein-concentrated animal feed, lactic, polylactic and succinic acid production from food waste. The results showed that animal feed production decreased global warming and socio-economic potential impacts relative to conventional feed products. Biochemical manufacturing incurred higher impacts from both the environmental and the socio-economic perspectives. These technologies are characterised by a low technology readiness level that should be taken into account when interpreting and using the results. Precisely for this reason, extensive uncertainty and sensitivity analyses were performed for each biochemical production technology to establish the hotspots, which were identified in steam and ancillary materials consumption, and feedstock-to-product yield. This suggests where to centre future optimisation and research efforts to achieve sustainable competitive technologies. Through this exercise, the study aims to shed light on the relevance of applying life cycle assessment and costing in the design and early (bio)technology development phases.

Applying biotechnology to design tree composition for value-added products a mini-review

Summary A major goal for forest biotechnology is the modulation of tree phenotypes for industrial applications. Such modulation is based on understanding the relationship between genotype and phenotype. Further, the capacity to control gene regulation and expression in a highly targeted manner is a critical component in new methods for achieving this targeted modulation. As such, biotechnology is vital to the continued improvement of existing forest products and the development of aspects of a viable bioeconomy. Such a bioeconomy will be based on differentiated value-added crops and animal breeds for food, feed and health. In a forestry context, novel uses of trees will potentially include traditional and advanced biofibre applications, bioremediation and products from biorefineries: for example, biodegradable plastics and feedstocks. To date biorefinery concepts have emphasised the production of lignin and polyphenolics that have considerable potential for the manufacture of high-value products. This paper discusses such developments and assesses the potential for biotechnology to address these complex questions.

White biotechnology: differences in US and EU approaches?

Several predominantly political movements advocate white, or industrial, biotechnology as a means to alleviate economic, ecological and societal problems in petroleum-dependent industrialized nations worldwide. US and European approaches differ significantly and we believe that, in the long-term, only economic drivers will be able to bring about the broad use of renewable resources and a bio-based economy. As long as the cost of fossil fuel and feedstock for key chemicals have not passed their respective critical thresholds, industrial biotechnology and its products will need political support and funding, particularly in the energy and bulk-chemicals sectors. Other uses of industrial biotechnology, however, such as biocatalytic conversions of fine and specialty chemicals and the manufacture of high-value products, such as nutriceuticals, cosmeceuticals and performance chemicals offer dynamic growth opportunities both for established chemical industries, as well as emerging entrepreneurial enterprises.

A microscale investigation of liquid bridges in the spherical agglomeration process

Spherical agglomeration is an industrial process traditionally used to separate or recover fine solids dispersed in a liquid suspension through the addition of a second immiscible liquid (binder) which presents an affinity for the solids and is capable of forming small liquid bridges that hold the particles together. Under appropriate physico-chemical conditions, the desired particles can be selectively agglomerated and removed from the slurry. More recently, the spherical agglomeration technique has been used for the manufacture of high value products, such as crystalline pharmaceutical drugs, and is attracting increasing attention in the bioprocessing area. However, spherical agglomeration has yet to reach widespread commercialisation beyond the minerals industry. This is despite the simplicity of the process, the low cost of installation required and the possibility of agglomerating particles down to a few microns in size and is probably due to the lack in understanding of the controlling mechanisms involved. In this paper, a microscale approach to investigate the mechanisms that lead to spherical agglomeration is presented. The geometry and the strength of liquid bridges formed between pairs of particles with diameters in the range 80–130 μm, submerged in a second liquid, are analysed and compared with values predicted by theory.