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US 9,957,620 B2Granted
Methods for the simultaneous electrolytic decarboxylation and reduction of sugars
AssigneeDfi USA, LLC
InventorsJ. David Genders, Jonathan A. Stapley
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Methods for simultaneously decarboxylating carbohydrate acids and reducing carbohydrate aldehydes in a divided electrochemical cell having a central compartment separate from the anode and cathode are disclosed using a cation membrane and a bipolar membrane. The improved methods are more cost-efficient and environmentally friendly.
Claims17
A method of simultaneously decarboxylating a carbohydrate acid and reducing a carbohydrate aldehyde in an electrochemical cell, comprising:
- providing an electrochemical cell having three compartments comprising an anode compartment, a central compartment, and a cathode compartment, the electrochemical cell further comprising a cation membrane positioned between and contacting the anode compartment and the central compartment, a bipolar membrane positioned between and contacting the central compartment and the cathode compartment, the cation membrane being configured to permit monovalent cation transfer, the cathode compartment containing a carbohydrate aldehyde, a catholyte and a cathode, and the anode compartment containing a carbohydrate acid, an anolyte, and an anode;
- providing an electrical current to the cell and producing a carbohydrate aldehyde in the anolyte, a monovalent cation hydroxide in the central compartment solution, and a sugar alcohol in the catholyte.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.