Journal
NATURE CHEMISTRY
Volume 13, Issue 11, Pages 1118-+Publisher
NATURE PORTFOLIO
DOI: 10.1038/s41557-021-00783-2
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Funding
- Swedish Energy Agency [47448-1, 45903-1, 41262-1]
- Bio-based Industries Joint Undertaking under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program [744349]
- Olle Engkvists Stiftelse [189-0209]
- COST [FP-1306-STSM]
- Ake Akessons Stiftelse [1943229]
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In summary, lignin is a significant source of renewable aromatics, with potential for increased yields by selectively cleaving C-C bonds through oxidation reactions. This advancement is crucial for enhancing the sustainability and competitiveness of biorefining processes.
Lignin is an aromatic polymer that constitutes up to 30 wt% of woody biomass and is considered the largest source of renewable aromatics. Valorization of the lignin stream is pivotal for making biorefining sustainable. Monomeric units in lignin are bound via C-O and C-C bonds. The majority of existing methods for the production of valuable compounds from lignin are based on the depolymerization of lignin via cleavage of relatively labile C-O bonds within lignin structure, which leads to yields of only 36-40 wt%. The remaining fraction (60 wt%) is a complex mixture of high-molecular-weight lignin, generally left unvalorized. Here we present a method to produce additional valuable monomers from the high-molecular-weight lignin fraction through oxidative C-C bond cleavage. This oxidation reaction proceeds with a high selectivity to give 2,6-dimethoxybenzoquinone (DMBQ) from high-molecular-weight lignin in 18 wt% yield, thus increasing the yield of monomers by 32%. This is an important step to make biorefining competitive with petroleum-based refineries.
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