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US 2016/0237103 A1Published application
Processing biomass
AssigneeXyleco, Inc.
InventorsMarshall Medoff, Thomas Craig Masterman
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Biomass feedstocks (e.g., plant biomass, animal biomass, and municipal waste biomass) are processed to produce useful products, such as fuels. For example, systems are described that can use feedstock materials, such as cellulosic and/or lignocellulosic materials and/or starchy materials, to produce a product or intermediate, e.g., energy, a food, a fuel, or a material.
Claims28
A method of separating lignin or lignosulfonates from a lignocellulosic material, the method comprising:
- exposing a stream of lignocellulosic material having a variable lignin content to a dose of ionizing radiation, while changing a parameter of the ionizing radiation to compensate for changes in lignin content having been detected in the stream, to produce recalcitrance-reduced, irradiated lignocellulosic material having received a dose of ionizing radiation based on the lignin content of the material, the ionizing radiation dose ranging from 0.1 Mrad to 5.0 Mrad per 1% by weight of lignin;
- wherein the parameter is selected from the group consisting of a dose for the ionizing radiation, a dose rate for the ionizing radiation, an energy value for the ionizing radiation, and a selection of one or more species of charged particles for the ionizing radiation;
- and
- processing the recalcitrance reduced, irradiated lignocellulosic material to obtain a first process stream comprising lignin or lignosulfonates, and a second process stream comprising polysaccharides.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.