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DOE OSTI · 3013272

From lignin to market: a technical and economic perspective of reductive depolymerization approaches

Daelemans, Brent [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium)] (ORCID:0000000152429202)·Sridharan, Balaji [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium)] (ORCID:0000000191221674)·Jusner, Paul [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium)] (ORCID:0000000281524433)·Mukherjee, Agneev [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium)] (ORCID:0000000280589059)·Chen, Jiazhao [University of Groningen (Netherlands)] (ORCID:0000000263142781)·Kenny, Jacob K. [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Center for Bioenergy Innovation (CBI)] (ORCID:0000000158832043)·Van Dael, Miet [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium); Hasselt University, Diepenbeek (Belgium)] (ORCID:0000000309225735)·Vanbroekhoven, Karolien [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium)] (ORCID:0000000311736497)·Deuss, Peter J. [University of Groningen (Netherlands)] (ORCID:0000000222542500)·Stone, Michael L. [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Center for Bioenergy Innovation (CBI)] (ORCID:0000000263417183)·Feghali, Elias [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium); Notre Dame University-Louaize, Zouk Mosbeh (Lebanon)] (ORCID:0000000315613259)
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Abstract

Lignin has grown into one of the main candidates to replace fossil-based resources as it is the largest renewable source of aromatic building blocks. The complex structure of polymeric lignin, however, requires depolymerization to simpler building blocks for the chemical industry. One of the most promising depolymerization approaches is reductive depolymerization of which two process configurations are currently studied in pilot scale installations for upscaling to industrial scale: (i) reductive catalytic fractionation (RCF), and (ii) reductive catalytic depolymerization (RCD). Both technical and techno-economic aspects will be covered within this review, discussing the advantages and challenges of both approaches regarding processing, production costs, product output, and applications. In this regard, RCF benefits from its decreased energy and solvent consumption linked with being a one-step process and delivers a product with a high monomer content (∼25–45 wt%). RCD, on the other hand, has the advantage of continuous processing and reduced catalyst fouling and delivers a product that mainly consists of oligomers (<10 wt% monomers). The complete overview of both processes presented here addresses their potential, and can guide future researchers, policy makers and companies to make thoughtful decisions on lignin valorization.

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09 BIOMASS FUELSbiomasscontinuous depolymerizationligninreductive catalytic fractionationtechno-economic assessment

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Daelemans, Brent [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium)] (ORCID:0000000152429202), Sridharan, Balaji [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium)] (ORCID:0000000191221674), Jusner, Paul [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium)] (ORCID:0000000281524433), Mukherjee, Agneev [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium)] (ORCID:0000000280589059), Chen, Jiazhao [University of Groningen (Netherlands)] (ORCID:0000000263142781), Kenny, Jacob K. [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Center for Bioenergy Innovation (CBI)] (ORCID:0000000158832043), Van Dael, Miet [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium); Hasselt University, Diepenbeek (Belgium)] (ORCID:0000000309225735), Vanbroekhoven, Karolien [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium)] (ORCID:0000000311736497), Deuss, Peter J. [University of Groningen (Netherlands)] (ORCID:0000000222542500), Stone, Michael L. [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Center for Bioenergy Innovation (CBI)] (ORCID:0000000263417183), Feghali, Elias [Flemish Institute for Technological Research (VITO N.V.), Mol (Belgium); Notre Dame University-Louaize, Zouk Mosbeh (Lebanon)] (ORCID:0000000315613259). 2025-10-07. From lignin to market: a technical and economic perspective of reductive depolymerization approaches. https://doi.org/10.1039/d5gc02316e

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