Fractionation of Pyroligneous Acid: The First Step for the Recovery of Levoglucosan

Abstract

Levoglucosan (LG) obtained from lignocellulosic biomass exhibits great potential as a specific tracer for biomass burning aerosols and as a raw material for synthesizing stereoregular polysaccharides. One potentially viable source of LG is pyroligneous acid (PA). This study investigated the effects of heating temperature on the extraction capability and the chemical composition of distillate and residual fractions. The results demonstrated that vacuum distillation extracted the acids, alcohols, ketones, aldehydes, and other organic matter. When the heating temperature was above 80 °C, the moisture content of the residual fraction was unchanged. The chemical composition of residual fraction was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The analysis showed that the relative content of the LG, as obtained from the 90 °C distillation temperature, was 75.6%. Thus, it can be used as raw material for subsequent purification.

Herbicidal effects of wood vinegar on nitrophilous plant communities

“…Propanoic acid, acetyloxyacetic acid, and butanoic acid were also detected, though in lower proportions (2.30, 1.18, and 0.39% area, respectively). The high carboxylic acid content gave WV a pH value of 2.23, similar to the pH reported in other studies (Aguirre et al., 2020 ; Fang et al., 2017 ).…”

“…Considerable amounts of several carbohydrates were found. Levoglucosan, a product of cellulose pyrolysis (Fang et al., 2017 ; Wang et al., 2017 ), was the most abundant carbohydrate (8.30% area). D‐mannose, a structural monosaccharide of hemicellulose, was also detected (2.27% area).…”

Composition, Ageing and Herbicidal Properties of Wood Vinegar Obtained through Fast Biomass Pyrolysis

“…Moisture values reported in the literature range from 72.4 wt. % for pyroligneous acid derived from pine and forest waste [53] to 81.44-93.48% obtained by Theapparat et al for bamboo and nimtree, respectively [54].…”

“…pH values were 2.04 to 2.50 (2.23 ± 0.21) for the prototype samples and 2.62 for the industrial herbicide. Reported values have been 1.8-2.9 for wood vinegar from birch [20] and 2.2-2.4 for wood vinegar from forest waste and pine [53].…”

“…Fang et al examined the fractionation of pyroligneous acid obtained from forest litter and pine. GC-MS analysis revealed relative contents of acetic acid and hydroxyacetone expressed as peak areas of 21.21% and 5.75%, respectively [53]. To complete the analysis of the wood vinegar samples, major components were quantified as percentage weights using the corresponding standard (Table 4).…”