Generation of chemical building blocks from plant biomass by selective depolymerization
First Claim
1. A method for the enzymatic treatment of raw polymeric feedstock comprising soluble and insoluble components, the method comprising:
- a. treating the insoluble raw polymeric feedstock with an enzyme system in order to liberate defined soluble monomeric or oligomeric building blocks from the raw polymeric feedstock; and
b. separating the defined soluble monomeric or oligomeric building blocks produced in a) from the remainder of the insoluble raw polymeric feedstock, wherein the raw polymeric feedstock comprises at least 1 wt-% lignin, andwherein a) and b) are sequentially repeated one or more times with different enzyme systems in order to liberate from the remainder of the raw polymeric feedstock other defined soluble monomeric or oligomeric building blocks, andwherein the enzyme system used in a particular enzymatic treatment contains not more than 20% of contaminating enzymatic activities, which can cause liberation of other defined monomeric or oligomeric building blocks, which have not been liberated in previous enzymatic treatments.
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Abstract
The invention concerns a method for the enzymatic treatment of raw polymeric feedstock comprising the following steps: (a) preferably separation of soluble components from the raw polymeric feedstock, (b) treating the raw polymeric feedstock with an enzyme system in order to liberate defined soluble monomeric or oligomeric building blocks from the insoluble raw polymeric feedstock; and (c) separating the defined monomeric or oligomeric building blocks produced in step b) from the remainder of the raw polymeric feedstock. Preferably, the enzyme system used in step b) contains not more than 50%, preferably not more than 20%, more preferably not more than 10%, more preferably not more than 5%, more preferably not more than 2%, more preferably not more than 1% of other enzyme activities apart from the enzyme activity resulting in liberation of said defined monomeric or oligomeric building blocks from the raw polymeric feedstock according to step b). Further aspects of the invention concern the use of “less pure” and thus less costly enzyme systems in subsequent enzymatic treatment steps and methods for determining the optimum sequence of enzymatic treatment steps by analysis of the raw polymeric feedstock used.
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Citations
38 Claims
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1. A method for the enzymatic treatment of raw polymeric feedstock comprising soluble and insoluble components, the method comprising:
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a. treating the insoluble raw polymeric feedstock with an enzyme system in order to liberate defined soluble monomeric or oligomeric building blocks from the raw polymeric feedstock; and b. separating the defined soluble monomeric or oligomeric building blocks produced in a) from the remainder of the insoluble raw polymeric feedstock, wherein the raw polymeric feedstock comprises at least 1 wt-% lignin, and wherein a) and b) are sequentially repeated one or more times with different enzyme systems in order to liberate from the remainder of the raw polymeric feedstock other defined soluble monomeric or oligomeric building blocks, and wherein the enzyme system used in a particular enzymatic treatment contains not more than 20% of contaminating enzymatic activities, which can cause liberation of other defined monomeric or oligomeric building blocks, which have not been liberated in previous enzymatic treatments. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38)
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Specification