EAGER: Development of statistically significant reaction models describing electrochemical conversion of biomass

木质素是一种来自植物的聚合材料，目前在生物炼制过程中燃烧作为能源。该项目的目标是在电化学反应器中将木质素转化为其他可能更有价值的产品。这将为木质素提供潜在的更高价值的用途，从而提高生物炼制的经济性，并最终降低生产下一代生物燃料的成本。此外，木质素产生的产品可以取代目前从石油中获取的化学品。减少对石油的依赖可以解决美国的能源和材料安全问题。目前，控制木质素转化的机制尚不清楚。该项目旨在通过研究与木质素共享某些特征的不太复杂的模型化合物的转化来解决这个基本问题。更好地了解这些反应是如何发生的，将推动生物质转化领域的发展，并可能最终导致一种更环保的方式来生产生物燃料和生物产品。该项目还包含一个教育推广计划，重点关注阿巴拉契亚地区在STEM领域代表性不足的高中生。该外展计划旨在提高阿巴拉契亚学生在四年制学院和大学的STEM领域的入学资格，这将使STEM工作者的背景多样化。该项目的目标是更好地了解主导木质素电化学转化的反应途径。由于木质素生物聚合物的复杂性，pi将与木质素模型化合物一起工作，这些木质素模型化合物与木质素本身具有共同的关键特征。该项目将涉及木质素模型化合物在不同电极电位下的电化学氧化，并使用核磁共振光谱来确定电化学氧化引起的结构变化。这一分析将用于阐明反应机理。pi假设可能有两种主要的反应途径：直接电化学转化或由羟基自由基介导的间接转化。额外的羟基自由基清除剂将有助于确定羟基自由基介导反应的相对重要性。一旦使用木质素模型化合物开发了反应途径模型，pi将比较和评估模型？S对木质素本身的描述，决定了反应途径对实际反应机制的描述程度。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Lignin is a polymeric material from plants that is currently burned for energy in biorefinery processes. The goal of this project is to convert lignin to other potentially more valuable products in an electrochemical reactor. This would yield potentially higher-value uses for lignin, which could improve biorefinery economics and eventually reduce the cost to produce next-generation biofuels. In addition, products generated from lignin could replace chemicals currently sourced from petroleum. Reduced dependence on petroleum could address the United States' energy and materials security. Currently, the mechanism governing conversion of lignin is not well-understood. This project seeks to address that fundamental issue by investigating the conversion of less complex model compounds that share some features with lignin. Generating better understanding of how these reactions occur would advance the field of biomass conversion and could eventually lead to a more environmentally friendly way to generate biofuels and bioproducts. This project also contains an educational outreach program focused on high school students in Appalachia who are underrepresented in the STEM fields. The outreach program seeks to increase Appalachian students' matriculation in the STEM fields at four-year colleges and universities, which would diversify STEM workers' backgrounds.The goal of this project is to develop better understanding of the reaction pathways that dominate electrochemical conversion of lignin. Because of the complexity of the lignin biopolymer, the PIs will work with lignin model compounds that share key features with lignin itself. The project will involve the electrochemical oxidizidation of the lignin model compounds at different electrode potentials, and the use of NMR spectroscopy to determine structural changes resulting from electrochemical oxidation. This analysis will be used to elucidate the reaction mechanism. The PIs hypothesize that two major reactions pathways are likely possible: direct electrochemical conversion or indirect conversion mediated by hydroxyl radicals. Additional of hydroxyl radical scavengers will help determine the relative importance of the hydroxyl radical mediated reaction. Once the reaction pathway models have been developed using the lignin model compounds, the PIs will compare and assess the model?s descriptions on lignin itself, determining how well the reaction pathways describe the actual reaction mechanism.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.