Acylation combined with esterification of lignin-derived material

Abstract

A method for converting a lignin-derived material into at least one acylated lignin-derived material and at least one esterified lignin derivative, the method including the steps of: providing the lignin-derived material comprising lignin monomers (20 to 50 wt. %) and lignin depolymerization products (50 to 80 wt. %); exposing the lignin-derived material to a carboxylic acid to create a reaction mixture and adjusting the pH of the reaction mixture to a pH below 1; heating the reaction mixture to a temperature of up to 100° C. for a period of time sufficient to convert a portion of the lignin-derived material into the at least one acylated lignin-derived material present in a resulting reaction mixture; separating an hydrophobic organic phase of the resulting reaction mixture from an aqueous phase which contains hydrophilic lignin-derived material; providing an acidic composition having a pH of less than 1, the acidic composition including an acid selected from the group consisting of sulfuric acid, an alkylsulfonic acid, and an arylsulfonic acid, an alcohol selected from C1-C8 linear alcohol, and C3-C8 branched alcohol and mixtures thereof; exposing the aqueous phase containing hydrophilic lignin-derived material to the acidic composition to form an esterification reaction mixture; heating up the esterification reaction mixture to a temperature ranging from 25° C. to 120° C.; and allowing a reaction to occur for a pre-determined period of time to convert at least some of the hydrophilic lignin-derived material present into the at least one esterified lignin derivative.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.