PARTNERSHIP: DATA-DRIVEN CHEMO-SELECTIVE LIGNIN VALORIZATION PROCESS TO BIOCHEMICALS AND AVIATION FUEL

The overall goal of this project is to develop a process to selectively convert lignin to high-value aromatics (LHA) with an emphasis on minimizing process cost, the use of the non-renewables, and energy intensity. In the proposed LHA system, the representative lignin from waste hardwood and agricultural residues will be selectively depolymerized to monomeric aromatics (MA, Mw<250 Da) and other LMWA (Mw>250 Da) in high yield (>95%), using an optimized graphene oxide-metal (GO-M) catalyst derived from data-driven catalyst design, followed by a PO process. The water-soluble aromatic carboxylates in LMWA will be isolated from the organic oil and then hydrolyzed to AA with a high yield (>40%). The remaining LMWA (>55%) resembles the carbon chain of SAF, which will be converted to SAF by a mild hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) process. In the end, an innovative stochastic process control algorithm will be developed to optimize this integrated process with a variety of feedstock heterogeneity. Then, the techno-economic assessment and life cycle analysis (TEA/LCA) will be applied to evaluate the technical and economic feasibility and environmental impacts of the proposed process for converting lignin to high-value and bio-based aromatics (AA and SAF).Our research will pursue the following specific research objectives:Selectively convert lignin to aromatic aldehydes and LMWA in high yield via oxidative lignin depolymerization using a GO-M catalyst.Develop protective oxidation (PO) approach to selectively oxidize aromatic aldehydes to AA.Isolate AA from LMWA and transform the remaining LMWA to SAF via a mild HDO process.Conduct a data-driven catalyst design to optimize the catalysts for both the oxidative lignin depolymerization and HDO processes.Develop a new stochastic process control and optimization algorithm for the integrated LHA system and perform a TEA/LCA assessment to determine the system's feasibility and scalability.