Biomass is an important feedstock for the renewable production of fuels, chemicals, and energy. As of 2005, over 3% of the total energy consumption in the United States was supplied by biomass, and it recently surpassed hydroelectric energy as the largest domestic source of renewable energy. Similarly, the European Union received 66.1% of its renewable energy from biomass, which thus surpassed the total combined contribution from hydropower, wind power, geothermal energy, and solar power. In addition to energy, the production of chemicals from biomass is also essential; indeed, the only renewable source of liquid transportation fuels is currently obtained from biomass.

The Catalytic Valorization of Lignin for the Production of Renewable Chemicals

Technology development for the production of biobased products from biorefinery carbohydrates—the US Department of Energy’s “Top 10” revisited

Molecular self-assembly is the spontaneous association of molecules under equilibrium conditions into stable, structurally well-defined aggregates joined by noncovalent bonds. Molecular self-assembly is ubiquitous in biological systems and underlies the formation of a wide variety of complex biological structures. Understanding self-assembly and the associated noncovalent interactions that connect complementary interacting molecular surfaces in biological aggregates is a central concern in structural biochemistry. Self-assembly is also emerging as a new strategy in chemical synthesis, with the potential of generating nonbiological structures with dimensions of 1 to 10(2) nanometers (with molecular weights of 10(4) to 10(10) daltons). Structures in the upper part of this range of sizes are presently inaccessible through chemical synthesis, and the ability to prepare them would open a route to structures comparable in size (and perhaps complementary in function) to those that can be prepared by microlithography and other techniques of microfabrication.

Molecular self-assembly and nanochemistry: A chemical strategy for the synthesis of nanostructures

Renewable Resources Robert-Jan van Putten,†,‡ Jan C. van der Waal,† Ed de Jong,*,† Carolus B. Rasrendra,‡,⊥ Hero J. Heeres,*,‡ and Johannes G. de Vries* †Avantium Chemicals, Zekeringstraat 29, 1014 BV Amsterdam, the Netherlands ‡Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, 9747 AG Groningen, the Netherlands Stratingh Institute for Chemistry, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, 9747 AG Groningen, the Netherlands DSM Innovative Synthesis BV, P.O. Box 18, 6160 MD Geleen, the Netherlands Department of Chemical Engineering, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Ganesha 10, Bandung 40132, Indonesia

Hydroxymethylfurfural, A Versatile Platform Chemical Made from Renewable Resources

This critical review provides a survey illustrated by recent references of different strategies to achieve a sustainable conversion of biomass to bioproducts. Because of the huge number of chemical products that can be potentially manufactured, a selection of starting materials and targeted chemicals has been done. Also, thermochemical conversion processes such as biomass pyrolysis or gasification as well as the synthesis of biofuels were not considered. The synthesis of chemicals by conversion of platform molecules obtained by depolymerisation and fermentation of biopolymers is presently the most widely envisioned approach. Successful catalytic conversion of these building blocks into intermediates, specialties and fine chemicals will be examined. However, the platform molecule value chain is in competition with well-optimised, cost-effective synthesis routes from fossil resources to produce chemicals that have already a market. The literature covering alternative value chains whereby biopolymers are converted in one or few steps to functional materials will be analysed. This approach which does not require the use of isolated, pure chemicals is well adapted to produce high tonnage products, such as paper additives, paints, resins, foams, surfactants, lubricants, and plasticisers. Another objective of the review was to examine critically the green character of conversion processes because using renewables as raw materials does not exempt from abiding by green chemistry principles (368 references).

Conversion of biomass to selected chemical products

Petroleum is not only the primary feedstock for liquid fuels but also the basis for most of the chemicals and polymers that we use ( 1 , 2 ). Continuing questions about the longevity and stability of petroleum supplies, as well as the environmental impacts of its production and use, have driven the development of alternatives such as agricultural or woody biomass. Biomass could supplement petroleum as the main feedstock for fuel and chemical production ( 3 , 4 ), but it will be necessary to develop large-scale fermentation infrastructure for fuels, as well as new synthesis routes to chemicals that start with carbohydrates ( 5 – 7 ). If carbohydrates could be converted to compounds with fewer oxygenated groups that reacted more like petroleum, they could supply the petrochemical industry plants with a renewable feedstock. Two recent papers by Bond et al. ( 8 ) and Lange et al. ( 9 ) now suggest that levulinic acid (LA), a dehydration product of simple sugars like glucose, can meet this need (see the figure). Incorporation of LA as an intermediate allows use of catalytic conversion processes fully compatible with the infrastructure of the chemical industry.

https://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/329/5991/522.full.pdf

Connecting Biomass and Petroleum Processing with a Chemical Bridge

Palladium-assisted intramolecular amination of olefins. Synthesis of nitrogen heterocycles

Background: As a major component of plant cell wall, lignin plays important roles in mechanical support, water transport, and stress responses. As the main cause for the recalcitrance of plant cell wall, lignin modification has been a major task for bioenergy feedstock improvement. The study of the evolution and function of lignin biosynthesis genes thus has two-fold implications. First, the lignin biosynthesis pathway provides an excellent model to study the coordinative evolution of a biochemical pathway in plants. Second, understanding the function and evolution of lignin biosynthesis genes will guide us to develop better strategies for bioenergy feedstock improvement. Results: We analyzed lignin biosynthesis genes from fourteen plant species and one symbiotic fungal species. Comprehensive comparative genome analysis was carried out to study the distribution, relatedness, and family expansion of the lignin biosynthesis genes across the plant kingdom. In addition, we also analyzed the comparative synteny map between rice and sorghum to

/pdf/comparative-genome-analysis-of-lignin-biosynthesis-gene-1z2mulw3o8.pdf

Joseph J. Bozell

Papers

Technology development for the production of biobased products from biorefinery carbohydrates—the US Department of Energy’s “Top 10” revisited

Connecting Biomass and Petroleum Processing with a Chemical Bridge

Palladium-assisted intramolecular amination of olefins. Synthesis of nitrogen heterocycles

Palladium-assisted intramolecular amination of olefins. Synthesis of nitrogen heterocycles

Comparative genome analysis of lignin biosynthesis gene families across the plant kingdom