Method for producing levulinic acid
AssigneesIndian Oil Corporation Limited, Department of Biotechnology
InventorsAlok Satlewal, Ruchi Agrawal, Ravindra Kumar, Ravi Prakash Gupta, Sankara Sri Venkata Ramakumar
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Abstract
The present disclosure relates to a process for producing levulinic acid from the technical lignin. The technical lignin is rich in lignin and ash and do not have any other use and usually incinerated as a waste management strategy. During the incineration process, the cellulose also gets burnt and wasted. In the present disclosure, there is provided an economical and environmentally friendly process to produce levulinic acid from the technical lignin by using a synergistic combination of catalysts for high yields and high titer with acid recycling in a cost-effective manner.
Claims14
A process for producing levulinic acid from technical lignin, the process comprising:
- a) treating technical lignin with a combination of formic acid and technical spirit in a high-pressure reactor (HPR) for obtaining cellulose and lignin;
- b) subjecting the cellulose of step a) to a treatment with a catalyst to obtain a slurry;
- c) centrifuging the slurry to obtain a levulinic acid containing liquid fraction;
- d) mixing the levulinic acid containing liquid fraction with a solvent to obtain an organic mixture and an acidic aqueous liquid waste;
- e) evaporating the solvent from the organic mixture to obtain levulinic acid;
- and
- f) recycling the acidic aqueous liquid waste of step d) and solvent of step d) for a subsequent cycle of levulinic acid extraction and purification;
- wherein the technical lignin comprises 10-25% cellulose, 0-5% hemicellulose, 25-55% lignin and 20-50% ash content.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.