Fast and catalyst-free conversion of protein-rich biomass using plasma electrolysis

As a byproduct of daily life and many modern industries, protein-rich waste or biomass is increasingly produced worldwide and emerges as an environmental burden if not properly managed. Here, we demonstrate a sustainable plasma electrolysis (PE) process for high-performance cleaner energy production from protein-rich biomass (PRB). With rapid external electricity delivery to drive electrical discharges directly into liquid, a localized and intensified reacting environment can be created, well suited to waste conversion into higher-value products, thus enabling an electrified biorefinery. Using protein-rich foods (here, pork liver and soy protein) as examples, this study investigates the PE-enabled, catalyst-free conversion of PRB in polyethylene glycol 200 (PEG 200), aiming to understand the conversion process, product compositions and migration and transformation of organic elements and metal ions. Results show that the conversion of the pork liver reaches 95.1% at 10 min, generating a liquid product with a high heating value (HHV) of 26.88 MJ/kg. Highly reactive oxygen species generated during the discharge, such as O and OH radicals, lead to the precipitation of metal ions from the feedstock and the transfer of nitrogen to the gas phase. This study provides a novel and promising Power-to-X process for the valorization of protein-rich feedstock under mild conditions.

Automated summary

This study demonstrates a sustainable plasma electrolysis process for converting protein-rich waste into high-performance cleaner energy. The results show that the process can effectively convert protein-rich foods into liquid products with a high heating value.