Fractionation of Alkaline Pulping Liquors for Fuel and Chemical Production

Currently, North American pulp mills are in a period of decreased profitability and consolidation due to a number of economic factors and the development of processes and technologies for new value added products from existing process streams should be an important focus for this industry to remain competitive. In existing kraft chemical pulp mill designs, solubilized lignin and hemicellulose are typically concentrated and combusted to produce steam and electricity and to recover the pulping chemicals. There still exists a very large potential for other more profitable applications of the hemicellulose and lignin fractions of the biomass which can provide the mill with a more diverse product portfolio. Based on the new chemical properties of these hemicelluloses and lignins, there are important implications for process separations based on solubility for example in different solvents and at different pH values. To understand these separations, it is important to understand the physical properties of these biopolymers in solution and equilibrium behavior and crystallization dynamics including interactions between phases. The purpose of this work is to investigate the potential of technologies that integrate alkaline chemical pulping with hemicellulose and lignin extraction, recovery, and utilization as feedstocks for higher value products such as solid fuels and polymer building blocks. The potential applications that are to be addressed and developed in this work have a strong industrial relevance.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Program Information: Advanced Research, Biobased Research

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Completed
• Funding: $150000.00
• Sponsor Organizations:

  Research and Innovative Technology Administration

  Department of Transportation
  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Project Managers:

  Johnson, Shawn

• Performing Organizations:

  Michigan State University, East Lansing

  East Lansing, MI  United States  48824
• Principal Investigators:

  Hodge, David

• Start Date: 20090701
• Expected Completion Date: 0
• Actual Completion Date: 20120630
• Source Data: RiP Project 25220

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Alkali; Alternate fuels; Cellulose; Chemical properties; Economic factors; Lignin; Technological innovations
• Uncontrolled Terms: Pulp residues; Value added
• Subject Areas: Economics; Energy; Highways; Transportation (General);

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01572262
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Research and Innovative Technology Administration
• Files: RIP
• Created Date: Aug 4 2015 1:02AM