Synthesis Of Methyl Levulinate Research Articles

Assessment of the thermal degradation kinetics of fresh green coconut husk (Cocos nucifera L.) powder and after methyl levulinate production

This study describes the recycling of green coconut husk powder (CHP) aimed at the sustainable production of methyl levulinate. The preliminary step involved thermogravimetric analysis of green (CHP) and residues after synthesis of methyl levulinate with the catalyst’s aluminum sulfate (CHP-AS) and titanium dioxide (CHP-TD), based on a degradation and determination of activation energy using the Ozawa-Flynn-Wall (OWF) method. Thermogravimetric analyses showed significant differences between the main constituents of CHP, CHP-AS and CHP-TD residues: hemicellulose (18.18, 9.78 and 12.17%), cellulose (44.65, 26.18 and 44.23%) and lignin (20.09, 19.89 and 19.58%), respectively. The methyl levulinate concentration obtained by the reaction between CHP and aluminum sulfate was 16.53 g.L-1, due to the participation of hemicellulose and cellulose. The results showed that the activation energies calculated using the OFW method were 142 kJ.mol-1 (CHP), 125 kJ.mol-1 (CHP-AS) and 180 kJ.mol-1 (CHP-TD).

Characterizing and using a new bi-functional catalyst to sustainably synthesize methyl levulinate from biomass carbohydrates

In recent years, significant attention has been dedicated to converting biomass carbohydrates into alkyl levulinates (biofuel additives) in alcoholic media, in search of various cheap and active solid catalysts through relatively easy pathways and from non-dangerous precursors. The synthesis of methyl levulinate (ML) using a new Brønsted/Lewis acid sites catalyst was investigated, emphasizing the influence of three parameters (catalyst loading, the molar concentration of fructose in methanol, and reaction temperature) on the process. The synthetized catalyst, SO42−/TiO2–La2O3 coating Fe3O4, was characterized by different techniques (FT-IR, XRD, TGA, TEM-EDX, ICP-OES). The design of the ML synthesis experiment was carried out using the Box-Behnken technique, while the response surface methodology was applied to obtain the optimized process conditions. A mathematical model of the catalytic synthesis was built, based upon first principles, and the experimental time variation of the reaction mixture concentrations was used to find, through regression, the values of the constants of a newly proposed kinetic model.

Utilization of Core Oil Palm Trunk Waste to Methyl Levulinate: Physical and Chemical Characterizations

Core oil palm trunk (COPT) is a lignocellulosic waste that poses as an alternative carbon source in bio-chemical and bio-fuel production. The bulk of free sugar present in its sap renders COPT as a potential starting material in the synthesis of methyl levulinate (ML). In this study, the effect of different sap extractions on COPT and synthesised methyl levulinate respectively was analysed. COPT sap was extracted using two different methods of blending and pressing, followed by the methanolysis reaction. The high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) results for both extraction methods have revealed that glucose is the primary sugar found in the sap. However, the total sugar concentration obtained from the pressing extraction method was found to be higher at 22.14 g/L, compared to blending extraction method at 20.23 g/L. Meanwhile, synthesized methyl levulinate was identified from the methanolysis of COPT sap in all type of catalysts (i.e. 0.5 M HCl, 1 M HCl, 0.5 M H2SO4 and 1 M H2SO4). It is worth noting that the isolated and highest concentration of methyl levulinate was obtained when catalysed by 1 M H2SO4 and can be clearly seen on the NMR spectrum.