METHOD OF PRETREATING LIGNOCELLULOSE-BASED BIOMASS

• US 20100279372A1
• Filed: 07/08/2009
• Published: 11/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: SIM, Sang Jun, HAN, Se Jong, KIM, Jin Woo, PARK, Sung Min, PARK, Jae Chan, CHO, Hwa Young
• Application Number:
  US12/499,383
• Publication Number:
  US 20100279372A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 435/165
• CPC Class Codes: C08H 8/00 Macromolecular compounds derived from lignocellulosic materials pretreatment thereof B27N
• CPC Class Codes: C12P 2201/00 Pretreatment of cellulosic or lignocellulosic material for subsequent enzymatic treatment or hydrolysis
• CPC Class Codes: C12P 7/10 substrate containing cellulosic material
• CPC Class Codes: C13K 1/02 obtained by saccharification of cellulosic materials manufacture of fodder A23K10/32
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 50/10 Biofuels, e.g. bio-diesel
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 50/30 Fuel from waste, e.g. synthetic alcohol or diesel
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 30/20 using bio-feedstock

Abstract

Disclosed is a method of pretreating lignocellulose-based biomass by extracting lignin from biomass by adding a solvent for dissolving lignin to the lignocellulose-based biomass including lignin, hemicellulose and cellulose, and extracting the cellulose and/or hemicellulose by adding an ionic liquid to the remaining biomass after extracting the lignin.

Claims

1. A method of pretreating lignocellulose-based biomass, comprising:

extracting lignin from a lignocellulose-based biomass by adding a solvent for dissolving the lignin from the lignocellulose-based biomass which includes lignin, hemicellulose and cellulose; and

extracting the cellulose and/or hemicellulose by adding an ionic liquid to the remaining biomass after extracting the lignin.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the solvent for dissolving lignin is a basic solvent.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the basic solvent is at least one selected from the group consisting of aqueous ammonia, sodium hydroxide (NaOH), calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)₂), sodium sulfate (Na₂SO₄) and combinations thereof

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the basic solvent is aqueous ammonia.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein the basic solvent has a concentration of about 5 to about 30 wt % based on the total weight of the solvent solution.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the lignin is extracted, and then the solvent is evaporated for recirculation.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the ionic liquid includes at least one compound expressed by Formula (1):

[A]⁻

[B]⁻

 

 

(1)

wherein,

[A]⁻

is selected from the group consisting of

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the compound of Formula (1) is selected from the group consisting of 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium tetrachloroaluminate, 1-ethyl-3-methyl imidazolium tetrachloroaluminate, 1-ethyl-3-methyl imidalzolium hydrogensulfate, 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium hydrogensulfate, methylimidazolium chloride, 1-ethyl-3-methyl imidazolium acetate, 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium acetate, tris-2(hydroxyl ethyl)methylammonium methylsulfate, 1-ethyl-3-methyl imidazolium ethylsulfate, 1-ethyl-3-methyl imidazolium methanesulfonate, methyl-tri-n-butylammonium methylsulfate, 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium chloride, 1-ethyl-3-methyl imidasolium chloride, 1-ethyl-3-methyl imidazolium thiocyanate, 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium thiocyanate, 1-aryl-3-methyl imidazolium chloride, and mixtures or complexes thereof.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the compound of Formula (1) is selected from the group consisting of 1-ethyl-3-methyl imidazolium hydrogensulfate, 1-ethyl-3-methyl imidazolium acetate, 1-ethyl-3-methyl imidazolium chloride, and 1-n-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium chloride.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein the ionic liquid is recycled after extracting the cellulose and/or hemicellulose.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein an amount of the added ionic liquid is about 5 to about 20 times greater than a solid component remaining after extracting the lignin.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein the extraction of the lignin is performed at about 90 to about 110°

C. for about 0.1 to about 10 hours.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein the extraction of the cellulose is performed at about 80 to about 150°

C. for about 0.1 to about 20 hours.

14. A method of producing a biofuel comprising saccharifying the cellulose and/or hemicellulose extracted from the lignocellulosic biomass pretreated by the method of claim 1 to yield a monosaccharide by adding a hydrolase or a hydrolysis catalyst for hydrolysis thereto.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the hydrolase is cellulase.

16. The method according to claim 14, wherein the hydrolase is used about 5 to about 8 FPU/g.

17. The method according to claim 14, wherein the saccharifying is performed for about 24 to about 65 hours.

18. The method according to claim 14, further comprising fermenting the monosaccharide yielded in the saccharifying to produce alcohol.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the fermenting is performed using Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

20. The method according to claim 14, wherein volumetric productivity of ethanol (g/L/h) is at least 95%.