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Abstract

Hemicellulose has been extracted from birch (Betula pendula) sawdust by formic acid aided hot water extraction. The maximum amount of hemicellulose extracted was about 70mol% of the total hemicellulose content at 170°C, measured as the combined yield of xylose and furfural. Lower temperatures (130 and 140°C) favored hemicellulose hydrolysis rather than cellulose hydrolysis, even though the total hemicellulose yield was less than at 170°C. It was found that formic acid greatly increased the hydrolysis of hemicellulose to xylose and furfural at the experimental temperatures. The amount of lignin in the extract remained below the detection limit of the analysis (3g/L) in all cases. Formic acid aided hot water extraction is a promising technique for extracting hemicellulose from woody biomass, while leaving a solid residue with low hemicellulose content, which can be delignified to culminate in the three main isolated lignocellulosic fractions: cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin.

Lignin modification opens the possibility of using it in polyol bio-based polymers, such as phenol-formaldehyde resins, polyurethanes, composites, and binders. Pine kraft lignin Indulin AT was partially depolymerized and the resulting products analyzed to determine their degree of valorization. Depolymerized lignin products were analyzed by GPC-SEC (molar mass), ∆ε-IDUS (phenolic hydroxyls), HACL (formaldehyde uptake), 13 C-NMR (hydroxyl and methoxyl groups), and 1 H-DOSY (molar mass distribution). The dominant parameter in lignin depolymerization by solvolysis was reaction temperature. According to the results, a higher reaction temperature decreases the average molar masses and PDI of lignin as well as the primary and secondary aliphatic hydroxyls, while simultaneously increasing the phenolic hydroxyls and formaldehyde uptake of lignin. Other variables (time, formic acid wt %, ethanol wt %, lignin load) had lesser effects. Partial depolymerization by solvolysis in mild conditions without catalyst is a viable valorization route for lignin, by which lignin properties can be significantly improved.

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