Conversion of Biomass Using Simultaneous Chemo- and Bio-catalysis
As many countries move towards fossil fuel divestment, greater emphasis is being placed on the use of sustainable sources for the production of fuels and chemicals. Due to the current scale of production of petroleum, a mixed portfolio of alternative sour
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Conversion of Biomass Using Simultaneous Chemo- and Bio-catalysis Patrick J. Morgan, Fabio Lorenzini, and Andrew C. Marr Abstract As many countries move towards fossil fuel divestment, greater emphasis is being placed on the use of sustainable sources for the production of fuels and chemicals. Due to the current scale of production of petroleum, a mixed portfolio of alternative sources is needed to supply these demands. Biomass is a potential renewable and sustainable source for the production of biofuels and valuable chemicals. The conversion of biomass into biofuels and bio-derived platform chemicals to be directly placed into chemical production streams has been intensely explored over the last decade. One interesting avenue highlighted in this chapter is the development of systems that combine bio- and chemo-catalysis to convert biomass into value-added chemicals: in this endeavour, the targeted transformations are enabled by the concerted action of both chemical and biological catalysts. The combination of racemization catalysts and bio-catalytic enzymes for the production of optically pure products such as alcohols, amines and acyloins, in dynamic kinetic resolution, is hereby discussed along with several recent examples of biomass valorisation using actual, or potential, protocols involving the simultaneous use of both bio- and chemo-catalytic steps.
12.1 Introduction The scientific community and the wider world have come to the realisation that our current consumption of the Earth’s natural resources is unsustainable, and that new technologies, methodologies and renewable philosophies must be adopted to preserve these resources for future generations [1]. Petroleum derivatives are the primary feedstock for chemical production worldwide. Due to the recent volatility in oil prices, the current geopolitical turmoil in major oil producing regions, the fears of future uncertainty in oil availability, and environmental concerns, the need to move away from this feedstock and towards one that is sustainable and environmentally benign has become acute. One interesting alternative to petroleum for the
P.J. Morgan • F. Lorenzini • A.C. Marr (*) School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast, UK e-mail: [email protected] © Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2017 Z. Fang et al. (eds.), Production of Biofuels and Chemicals with Bifunctional Catalysts, Biofuels and Biorefineries 8, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-5137-1_12
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production of chemicals and fuels is biomass. Biomass includes plant or animal matter, energy crops, food and animal waste, as well as by-products of some industrial and chemical processes. This organic matter is a rich carbon source, and the production of basic platform chemicals and biofuels by biomass processing can be viable. The sheer quantity of biomass produced annually worldwide could potentially satisfy the present and future demands of fuels, materials and chemicals, currently produced from fossil fuels. In the United St
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