Photocatalytic valorization of lignin towards value-added end products

The transformation of lignin, the largest source of renewable aromatics, into value-added end products is of great importance in the pursuit of a sustainable future. Photocatalysis has emerged as an effective strategy for the valorization of lignin and has attracted much recent research interest. The envisioned research plan aims to develop a performant system with concrete potential for lignin valorization, in which depolymerization and upgrading is achieved by photocatalysis. Photocatalytic depolymerization of lignin by concurrent cleavage of C-C bond and C-O bond to obtain aromatic products is the major focus of the first postdoc year during the PDM mandate. For the upgrading of aromatics from lignin depolymerization, two photocatalytic approaches will be pursued, one is amination to manufacture pharma intermediates for pharmaceuticals, the other is coupling to generate polymer building blocks for bioplastics, both are beyond the state-of-art topics.

Keywords:Lignin valorization, Photocatalysis, Selective bond cleavage, Mechanism investigation, Value-added aromatics

Disciplines:Heterogeneous catalysis