Production of Fuels and Chemicals from Biomass: Condensation Reactions and Beyond

Abstract

Renewable resources and bio-based feedstocks may present a sustainable alternative to petrochemical sources to satisfy modern society's ever-increasing demand for energy and chemicals. However, the conversion processes needed for these future bio-refineries will likely differ from those currently used in the petrochemical industry. Biotechnology and chemocatalysis offer routes for converting biomass into a variety of molecules that can serve as platform chemicals. While a host of technologies can be leveraged for biomass upgrading, condensation reactions are significant because they have the potential to upgrade these bio-derived feedstocks while minimizing the loss of carbon and the generation of by-products. This review surveys both the biological and chemical catalytic routes to producing platform chemicals from renewable sources and describes advances in condensation chemistry and strategies for the conversion of these platform chemicals into fuels and high-value chemicals.

Formation Pathways toward 2‐ and 4‐Methylbenzaldehyde via Sequential Reactions from Acetaldehyde over Hydroxyapatite Catalyst

“…Upgrading bio‐derived base chemicals (e.g., ethanol, acetone) into value‐added commodity chemicals or fuels will be an important component of a sustainable society. Currently, biomass fermentation produces substantial amounts of ethanol . The amount of ethanol produced, however, exceeds its demand as a transportation fuel additive .…”

“…Catalytic upgrading of ethanol and its derivatives is therefore a desirable method to utilize the large amounts of ethanol while developing pathways for the renewable production of platform chemicals (e.g. 1‐butanol, 1,3‐butadiene, and diethylether) . Acetaldehyde, which is readily formed from ethanol via dehydrogenation, participates in multiple types of coupling reactions (e.g., aldol reaction, Guerbet reaction) that give larger chemical products, and the mechanisms and active surface species of these reactions have been investigated in detail over catalysts such as hydroxyapatite (HAP), metal oxides, and mixed metal oxides …”

Green Organocatalytic Dihydroxylation of Alkenes

“…[21] Along these lines, we are glad to report that products 2r and 2s, which have high synthetic value, were isolated in good to high yields. When the double bond is located within the ring, almost quantitative dihydroxylation took place and led to a mixture of four diastereomers (Scheme 4, compound 2o, 50:25:20:5).…”

Three‐Dimensional Printing with Biomass‐Derived PEF for Carbon‐Neutral Manufacturing

“…[1] Biomass-derived materials and sustainable feedstock will inevitably replace fossil hydrocarbons in the near future. [1] Biomass-derived materials and sustainable feedstock will inevitably replace fossil hydrocarbons in the near future.…”