Odor-Free Lignin from Lignocellulose by Means of High Pressure Unit Operations: Process Design, Assessment and Validation

In this work a process for the production of odor-free lignin from wheat straw using solely water, enzymes and CO2 is described. Wheat straw pellets are pretreated by liquid hot water and enzymatic hydrolysis in a pilot plant with a capacity of 40 L, which enables the production of 3 – 4 kg of Aquasolv lignin per batch. Dried lignin samples are further treated using supercritical CO2, resulting into extraction of a large number of odorous free fatty acids and volatile organic compounds. All process steps can be sequentially conducted in a fixed-bed via different sustainable solvents in a throughput regime.

Subjects

Enzymatic hydrolysis

Fixed-bed

Lignin

Liquid hot water

Pilot plant

Supercritical fluid extraction

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Odor-Free Lignin from Lignocellulose by Means of High Pressure Unit Operations: Process Design, Assessment and Validation