Man Jiang
Southwest Jiaotong University, China
Title: Degradation of lignin in acidic imidazolium ionic liquid
Biography
Biography: Man Jiang
Abstract
Lignin is the highest energy component of plant biomass consisting of phenol units. Eco-friendly degradation of lignin in ILs provides an important way to utilize it efficiently. In this study, 1-methyl-3-benzylimidazolium chloride (BnMIMCl) and 1-methyl-3-benzylimidazolium trichloroacetate (BnMIMTFA) were applied for degradation liquefaction of lignin. The highest liquefaction efficiency of 75.45% was obtained under the optimized condition. This attributed to the good dissolving capability and assistance of the ILs to lignin during the degradation. GC-MS analysis showed that 60% of low molecular products were phenols. The present method is simple and efficient at liquefaction and provides a useful approach for the production of basic petrochemical materials. Lignin is used for these materials. It is the second most abundant natural organic polymer after cellulose in the world.