Obtainment of chelating agents through the enzymatic oxidation of lignins by phenol oxidase

Oxidation of lignin obtained from acetosolv and ethanol/water pulping of sugarcane bagasse was performed by phenol oxidases: tyrosinase (TYR) and laccase (LAC), to increase the number of carbonyl and hydroxyl groups in lignin, and to improve its chelating capacity. The chelating properties of the original and oxidized lignins were compared by monitoring the amount of Cu²⁺ bound to lignin by gel permeation chromatography. The Acetosolv lignin oxidized with TYR was 16.8% and with LAC 21% higher than that of the original lignin. For ethanol/water lignin oxidized with TYR was 17.2% and with LAC 18% higher than that of the original lignin.     

Integrated processes for use of pulps and lignins obtained from sugarcane bagasse and straw

Sugarcane bagasse and straw can be converted into pulps, oils, controlled-release formulations, chelating agents, and composites. This article reviews bagasse and straw conversion efforts in Brazil. Laboratory-scale processes were developed aiming at the integral use of these biomass byproducts. Organosolv pulping and oxidation of lignin are the most promising processes for the rational use of sugarcane residues. Fungal pretreatment and spectroscopic characterization are also discussed.     

New Method for Carbohydrates Determination in Sugarcane Bagasse by HPAEC‐RPAD Using Glassy Carbon Electrode Modified with Carbon Nanotubes and Nickel Nanoparticles

Second generation ethanol can be produced from carbohydrates released from both sugarcane bagasse cell wall and sugarcane straw. The development of new method for the analysis of carbohydrates is, in this sense, seen as extremely relevant in the area of bioenergy. Based on the above considerations, the scope of this work encompasses the identification and quantification of carbohydrates composition in sugarcane bagasse without the need of sample derivatization, developing a novel analytical method using a glassy carbon electrode modified with multi‐walled carbon nanotubes containing nickel oxyhydroxide nanoparticles (GCE/MWCNT/NiOOH) and applying the modified electrode as a detector in HPAEC (High Performance Anion‐Exchange Chromatography) with reverse pulsed amperometric detection (RPAD) towards the determination of arabinose, galactose, glucose and xylose in hydrolyzed sugarcane bagasse. The carbohydrates concentrations determined in the hydrolyzed sugarcane bagasse were 6.1×10⁻⁴ mol L⁻¹, 1.0×10⁻² mol L⁻¹ and 2.8×10⁻³ mol L⁻¹ for arabinose, glucose, and xylose respectively. Our results showed that the present method is, in essence, attractive for analysis in the course of the production process of second generation ethanol production in that it does not require sample derivatization, has rapid run time, satisfactory separation, and can be used for the detection of carbohydrates without the interference of other electroactive species.     

Evaluation of the Sorptive Capacity of Sugarcane Bagasse and Its Coal for Heavy Metals in Solution

Recycling of sugarcane bagasse and its coal as metal sorbents to capture metal ions from wastewater is the aim of this study. Thus, stability of sugarcane bagasse and its coal, in addition to the solubilities of metal ions in synthetic solution, were determined in this study at different pH values. Also, sorption of Fe, Mn, Cd, and Pb ions with different concentrations (10‐100 mg L^?1) on different grain size fractions of sugarcane bagasse (< 150 > μm) and its coal (< 80 > μm) was carried out under different pH values (2, 4 and 6), dosage (2, 6, and 10 g L^?1), time intervals (15‐300 min.) and temperature (20‐50 °C). The results indicated that the sugarcane bagasse and its coal were more stable at pH 6, and the solubilities of metal ions in the synthetic solution exhibited high values at pH 2 more than pH 4 and 6, respectively. Generally, removal of metal ions using the sorbents increased with the decreasing of grain size fractions and with increasing of pH values (6 > 4 > 2), sorbent doses (10 > 6 > 2 g L^?1) and initial concentrations of metal ions (10‐100 mg L^?1). Coal of sugarcane bagasse was more effective than the sugarcane bagasse for removal of the metal ions from solution. Positive values of ΔH° suggest the endothermic nature of sorption in all cases. The negative Gibb's free energy values indicate the feasibility of the process and spontaneous nature of sorption (Fe‐bagasse coal system), while the positive value of ΔG° suggests the non‐spontaneous character of adsorption of all metals. The negative values of entropy change ΔS° (Pb‐bagasse system) indicate the highly ordered adsorption process in this case, while the positive values of ΔS° show the increased randomness at solid/solution interface during the sorption metal ion on bagasse. The results of activation energy values indicate the order of sorption feasibility is: Pb > Fe > Cd > Mn in the case of bagasse and Fe > Pb > Cd > Mn in the case of coal. Generally, the results of this study suggest that the sugarcane bagasse and its coal might provide an economical method for the removal of metal ions from wastewater.     

Infra-red spectroscopic study of lignins

Infra-red spectra from 200–4000cm⁻¹ of lignin precipitated from black liquor produced from different pulping processes of bagasse, e.g. soda, kraft, sulfite, peroxyacid and butanol, have been characterized. Peroxyacid lignins are more degraded than other lignins. However, peroxyacid lignin has a higher intensity band at 1720cm⁻¹ than other types of lignins. At the same time, the aromatic ring of lignin produced from peroxyacid pulping of bagasse undergoes severe degradation. Syringyl type of lignin is predominant in all isolated lignins. Peroxyacid and butanol lignins have lower quantities of syringyl lignin shown by the lower ratio of relative absorbance of band intensity at 1500cm⁻¹ to the band at 1600cm⁻¹ than other lignins. Kraft lignin has a broad weak band at about 630cm⁻¹ that is probably due to a C---S bond. A sharp band at 655cm⁻¹, which is due to SO₃H, is characteristic of lignosulfonate, which is precipitated from black liquor produced from sulfite pulping process of bagasse. Generally, degradation of different lignins during pulping of bagasse with different processes has the following sequence: peroxyformic > peroxyacetic > butanol-water > butanol-alkali > kraft > sulfite > soda.     

Oxidation of organosolv lignins in acetic acid

The oxidation of four lignins obtained by organosolv pulping of eucalyptus wood (Acetosolv-eucalyptus Acetosolv lignin [EAL]), sugarcanebagasse (Acetosolv-bagasse Acetosolv lignin [BAL] and in acetone/water/FeCl₃-bagasse acetone/water lignin [BAWL]), and a softwood mixture (Organocell, Munich, Germany) was performed to obtain vanillin, vanillic acid, and oxidized lignin. Experiments were carried out in a cetic acid under oxygen flow using HBr, cobalt(II), and manganese(II) acetates as catalysts. After 10 h the total vanillin and vanillic acid yields were BAL 0.05 mmol, EAL 0.38 mmol, BAWL 0.45 mmol, and Organ ocell 0.84 mmol. Acetosolv lignins are crosslinked, which explains the lower yields in mononuclear products. The reaction volume (Δ V) of this reaction is −817 cm³/mol, obtained in experiments performed under oxygen pressure, showing the high influence of pressure on the oxidation. The major part of the, lignin stays in solution (oxidized lignin), which was analyzed by infrared spectroscopy, showing an increased in carbonyl and hydroxyl groups in comparison with the original lignin. The oxidized lignin can be used as chelating agent in the treatment of effluents containing heavy metals.     

Structure of Alkali Lignins Fractionated from Ricinus communis and Bagasse. 1. Chemical Constituents

Fractionation of alkali lignins of the soda and sulfate pulping processes of Ricinus communis and bagasse was carried out by using successive equal concentrations of the alkaline reagent. Soda lignins were soluble in organic solvents, while the sulfate ones were sparingly soluble. Thus, two fractions of the sulfate lignins, soluble and insoluble, could be obtained from acetone. The different alkali lignin fractions were subjected to elemental and functional group analyses. For both Ricinus communis and bagasse, the carbon content of the fractions of the various types of lignin is in the order: soluble sulfate > soda > insoluble sulfate, while the methoxy is in the order: soda > soluble sulfate > insoluble sulfate. The phenolic OH content, as well as OH/C₉ of soda lignins of bagasse, are lower than those of soluble sulfate lignins. For Ricinus communis, the phenolic OH content and OH/C₉ is higher for some of the fractions (first three stages of cooking) of soda lignin than the corresponding fractions of kraft (sulfate) lignin, while the reverse takes place for the other fractions. For the same type of lignin, the fractions showed changes in their carbon, methoxyl, and phenolic OH contents. The change may be regular, i.e., increase or decrease with the order of stage of cooking, or irregular. Molecular weights of the different alkali lignins which are soluble in organic solvents ranged between 750 and 840.     

Thermal behaviour of lignins extracted from different raw materials

The thermal degradation of lignins extracted from bagasse, rice straw, corn stalk and cotton stalk, have been investigated using the techniques of thermogravimetric analysis (TG) and differential thermal analysis (DTA), between room temperature and 600°C. The actual pyrolysis of all samples starts above 200°C and is slow. The results calculated from TG curves indicated that the activation energy, Efor thermal degradation for different lignins lies in the range 7.949–8.087 kJ mol^?1. The DTA of all studied lignins showed an endothermic tendency around 100°C. In the active pyrolysis temperature range, thermal degradation occurred via two exothermic process at about 320 and 480°C, and a large endothermic pyrolysis region between 375 and 450°C. The first exothermic peak represents the main oxidation and decomposition reaction, the endothermic effect represents completion of the decomposition and the final exothermic peak represents charring.     

Solution and solid state13C-NMR of barley straw lignins

Grass lignins are formed by the polymerization of phenoxy radicals and contain a variety of carbon-carbon and carbon-oxygen bonds. They are similar to the hardwood lignins, but differ by containing a substantial proportion of esterified cinnamic acids. Detailed nuclear magnetic resonance studies in conjunction with chemical analysis have given new information on the structure of grass lignins. Milled straw lignins (MSL) from barley were examined by both solution and solid-state (CP/MAS) NMR before and after acetylation. The assignment of the carbon-13 (100 MHz) solution spectra was achieved using model compound data, nuclear Overhauser enhancement (NOE) suppression, and insensitive nuclei enhanced by polarization transfer (INEPT) techniques. The NOE suppression permitted quantitative analysis of lignin, giving information on the ratio of specific carbon atoms. Use of the relaxation agent, chromium acetylacetonate, enabled accumulation of sufficient spectral data to give a spectrum suitable for integration after 90 h. The INEPT technique, which had not previously been used for lignin analysis, was successfully applied to acetylated MSL. This technique increased signal intensities 3–4-fold and simplified the spectrum by inverting methylene carbons and eliminating or inverting quaternary carbons. Comparison of this spectrum with the normal spectrum permitted accurate assignment of quaternary and methine carbons. The solid-state carbon-13 CP/MAS NMR was used to examinein situ lignin and the isolated MSL. The¹³C-CP/MAS spectrum ofin situ lignin shows that cellulose and hemicellulose resonances dominate with little evidence ot the aromatic structure of lignin. the¹³C-CP/MAS of MSL shows reduced carbohydrate resonances and increased aromatic resonances. The extent of modification to the barley straw was estimated and results indicate the presence oflignin-carbohydrate complexes. Detailed information on the nature of the linkages between lignin components and between lignin and carbohydrate components has been obtained from these spectra.     

Structure of Alkali Lignins Fractionated from Ricinus communis and Bagasse. 3. IR Spectra

Abstract

The lignin fractions isolated by one- and multistage soda and sulfate cookings showed almost identical IR spectra, indicating the similarity of the lignin skeletal structure throughout the plant. However, the absorbances reveal some differences. Similarity of the spectra includes: 1) chelation and bonding of the hydroxyl groups. 2) Stretching vibration of C-H bonds in methyl, methoxyl, and methylene groups. 3) Stretching vibration of C≡N. 4) Carbonyl unconjugated β-ketone, conjugated acids, or esters at 1725 cm^?1. There is no change in the intensity of absorption at this band from that at 1515 cm^?1 with the cooking stage. 5) Aromatic skeletal vibration at 1610 and 1515 cm^?1, affected by ring substituents at 1425 cm^?1. 6) The band at 1465 cm^?1 showed a higher intensity for soda and soluble kraft lignins than for insoluble kraft ones. 7) The band at 1370 cm^?1, assigned to phenolic OH bending, is affected by the methoxyl group. 8) The absence of condensed guaiacyl and the presence of syringyl and uncondensed guaiacyl. Assignments for hardwood lignin are shown for soda and soluble kraft lignins of bagasse, while those for softwood lignin are shown for soda, soluble, and insoluble kraft lignins of Ricinus communis and for insoluble kraft lignin of bagasse. A relation exists between the carbohydrate's lignin and the band at 920 cm^?1. Lignins from Ricinus communis are of higher guaiacyl to syringyl ratios than those from bagasse. The presence of C—S vibration and the absence of thiol groups for kraft lignins are indicated.     

A Comparison Between Lime and Alkaline Hydrogen Peroxide Pretreatments of Sugarcane Bagasse for Ethanol Production

Pretreatment procedures of sugarcane bagasse with lime (calcium hydroxide) or alkaline hydrogen peroxide were evaluated and compared. Analyses were performed using 2³ factorial designs, with pretreatment time, temperature, and lime loading and hydrogen peroxide concentration as factors. The responses evaluated were the yield of total reducing sugars (TRS) and glucose released from pretreated bagasse after enzymatic hydrolysis. Experiments were performed using the bagasse, as it comes from an alcohol/sugar factory and bagasse, in the size, range from 0.248 to 1.397 mm (12–60 mesh). The results show that, when hexoses and pentoses are of interest, lime should be the pretreatment agent chosen, as high TRS yields are obtained for non-screened bagasse using 0.40 g lime/g dry biomass at 70 °C for 36 h. When the product of interest is glucose, the best results were obtained with lime pretreatment of screened bagasse. However, the results for alkaline peroxide and lime pretreatments of non-screened bagasse are not very different.     

Structural and thermal characterization of sugarcane bagasse phthalates prepared with ultrasound irradiation

Chemical modification of sugarcane bagasse was achieved by esterification with phthalic anhydride in pyridine after ultrasound irradiation. The parameters including ultrasonic irradiation time 0-40 min, phthalic anhydride dosage 2.5-7.5 g, reaction time 30-150 min, and reaction temperature 80-115 °C were optimised and the extent of phthalation was measured by weight percent gain. It was found that degradation of the cell wall polymers occurred at higher temperature (>90 °C) under the experimental conditions used.FT-IR and CP/MAS ¹³C NMR spectroscopy studies also clearly produced evidence for phthalation reaction. The phthalated bagasse preparations showed decreased thermal stability after chemical modification.     

Production of 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural and Furfural from Lignocellulosic Biomass in Water-Tetrahydrofuran Media with Sodium Bisulfate

5-Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) and furfural (FF), two bio-based platform chemicals, were produced from various raw lignocellulosic materials (corncob, corn stover, wheat straw, rice straw and sugarcane bagasse) in a water-tetrahydrofuran media by using NaHSO₄ as catalyst. The in fluences of reaction temperature (160-200 oC), reaction time (30-120 min), solvent volume ratio, feedstock concentration (2.4wt%-11.1wt%) and catalyst dosage were studied. The highest HMF and FF yields obtained from corncob were 47mol% and 56mol% under condition of 190 oC, 90 min, 10/1 of THF/H₂O. Besides, the lignin in the raw biomass wasalso depolymerized into organosolv lignin.     

Model-free kinetics applied to sugarcane bagasse combustion

Vyazovkin's model-free kinetic algorithms were applied to determine conversion, isoconversion and apparent activation energy to both dehydration and combustion of sugarcane bagasse. Three different steps were detected with apparent activation energies of 76.1 ± 1.7, 333.3 ± 15.0 and 220.1 ± 4.0 kJ/mol in the conversion range of 2-5%, 15-60% and 70-90%, respectively. The first step is associated with the endothermic process of drying and release of water. The others correspond to the combustion (and carbonization) of organic matter (mainly cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin) and the combustion of the products of pyrolysis.     

蔗渣的热解与燃烧动力学特性研究

利用热重分析仪对蔗渣在不同升温速率下的热解、燃烧失重特性进行了研究。采用Friedman法对反应过程中可能存在的反应机理进行初步判断，蔗渣热解过程由其主要组分半纤维素、纤维素和木质素热解的三个独立的平行反应来描述，相应的反应活化能分别为203.92 kJ·mol-1、238.50 kJ·mol-1和77.11 kJ·mol-1； 蔗渣燃烧过程分为两段，第一段类似于其热解过程，第二段由木质素热解和残焦燃烧共同组成的连续反应，反应活化能为255.57 kJ·mol-1和159.11 kJ·mol-1。通过非线性回归法拟合获得的曲线与实验曲线基本一致，证实了蔗渣的热解、燃烧过程中存在着上述假定的反应机理。     

The thermal behaviour of lignins from wasted black pulping liquors

The thermal degradation of lignins separated from black liquor waste from pulping of bagasse and cotton stalks has been investigated. Thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), differential thermal analysis (DTA) and derivative thermogravimetry (DTG), between 20 and 1000°C, have been used. Activation energies of treated lignins were calculated. Lignins separated from liquors obtained at low pulping temperature have higher activation energies than high-temperature lignins. The use of anthraquinone (AQ) as an additive for accelerating the pulping process raises the activation energy of the lignin in the black liquors waste.     

Influence of pressure in ethanol/water pulping of sugarcane bagasse

The influence of the pressure in the ethanol/water pulping of sugarcane bagasse was studied using argon pressure varying from 0.5 to 1.5 MPa. The reaction volume and activation volume were studied. For the reaction volume, temperature and time were constant and pressure was varied, and for the activation volume, temperature was constant and pressure and time were varied. The degradation of cellulose was not promoted by the pressure with positive reaction volume (4100 cm³/mol). On the other hand, degradation of xylan (polyoses) and lignin was strongly favored by the pressure and reaction volume ranged from ?1000 to ?3000 cm³/mol.     

A Comparison between Lime and Alkaline Hydrogen Peroxide Pretreatments of Sugarcane Bagasse for Ethanol Production

Pretreatment procedures of sugarcane bagasse with lime (calcium hydroxide) or alkaline hydrogen peroxide were evaluated and compared. Analyses were performed using 2 × 2 × 2 factorial designs, with pretreatment time, temperature, and lime loading and hydrogen peroxide concentration as factors. The responses evaluated were the yield of total reducing sugars (TRS) and glucose released from pretreated bagasse after enzymatic hydrolysis. Experiments were performed using the bagasse as it comes from an alcohol/sugar factory and bagasse in the size range of 0.248 to 1.397 mm (12–60 mesh). The results show that when hexoses and pentoses are of interest, lime should be the pretreatment agent chosen, as high TRS yields are obtained for nonscreened bagasse using 0.40 g lime/g dry biomass at 70 °C for 36 h. When the product of interest is glucose, the best results were obtained with lime pretreatment of screened bagasse. However, the results for alkaline peroxide and lime pretreatments of nonscreened bagasse are not very different.     

Studies on polymers and composites from lignin and fiber derived from sugar cane

Sugarcane fiber (i.e. bagasse) lignin has a larger fraction of aromatics unsubstitution in the ortho position than hardwood or softwood lignin and hence has the greater ability to be derivatized. Furthermore, organosolv lignin has a higher purity than sulfonated and kraft lignins. This work examines the purification of organosolv lignin derived from bagasse and the physico‐chemical properties of the lignin and lignin‐phenol formaldehyde (PF) resin coatings, and composites. The wetability tests have shown that lignin and lignin‐PF resin films are effective water barrier coatings, though the contact angles of lignin‐PF resin films were considerably less than the wax films. The overall mechanical properties (i.e. peak stress, peak strain and modulus) of the bagasse fiber composites were lower than the values obtained with the composites without the inclusion of bagasse fiber. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Molecular variability of lignin fractions isolated from wheat straw

Three lignin fractions were isolated from wheat straw internodes and leaves: alkali lignin (LA), milled lignin (LM) and enzyme lignin (LE). Thioacidolysis and alkaline nitrobenzene oxidation were used for the characterisation of the lignin monomeric composition. Esterified and etherifiedp-coumaric and ferulic acids were characterised by alkali hydrolysis and acidolysis, respectively. Lignin fractions from leaves are more condensed than those from internodes. The syringyl/guaiacyl (S/G) ratio is higher in the case of internode lignins. Among the three lignin fractions, LA is the less condensed whereas LM and LE do not present significant structural differences according to their monomeric composition. Finally, the lignin fractions studied differ in their contents and proportions of associated phenolic acids.