Biorefinery of low value/waste biomass to produce bio-products and process intensification

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Developing bio-based fuels, chemicals and materials from waste biomass holds promise but suffers high production costs and a lack of innovative technologies as well as a rational understanding of mechanism governing biomass processing. My previous NSERC Discovery Grant for developing liquid biofuels has provided the foundation for the original innovative research in biomass processing and engineering. Building on the strengths of past research efforts, the proposed program aims to develop an integrated biorefinery to produce an array of bioproducts from waste biomass to increase both economic and environmental feasibility of bio-waste utilizaiton. The specific objectives are to 1) develop processes for extracting valuable health-promoting ingredients. The objective will be achieved by using safe, green, novel deep eutectic solvents to isolate naturally existing bioactive compounds such as phenolics and polysaccharides from biomass. Microwave irradiation will be used to intensify the extraction process; 2) produce biocrude (a green alternative to fossil crude) from the remaining biomass after extraction via an emerging technology, hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL). The liquefaction process will be developed experimentally and the liquefaction mechanism will be studied by experimentation and computation; 3) apply the solid residue from HTL, biochar as novel organic soil amendments. Protocols for the biochar selection for plants will be developed by evaluating agronomic effect of HTL-biochar and correlating biochar properties to soil properties; and 4) reuse the aqueous phase from HTL to minimize the impact of waste disposal on the environment. The aqueous phase will be recirculated to HTL process to reduce the freshwater consumption and enhance the biocrude yield. The five-year program will cover both fundamental (Density Functional Theory-based studies on separation/reaction mechanisms) and applied research (experimentally develop/optimize production processes). The novelties include i) employing energy-efficient and environmentally friendly processes such as deep eutectic solvent extraction, hydrothermal liquefaction and microwave irradiation; ii) achieving a zero-waste biorefinery through producing a range of products from high to low value (bioactive, biocrude, biochar, struvite); iii) incorporating computational calculation to gain a fundamental understanding of extraction and liquefaction mechanism; and iv) combined use of biochar and struvite (by-products from HTL) as novel soil amendments. The outcomes of this research include advanced fundamental knowledge in separation/reaction engineering and feasible processes/practical applications in bioproduct developments. Upon a transition from a petro-economy to a bioeconomy, the technologies developed in this research will benefit multiple Canadian industrial sectors (manufacturing, energy and agri-food) and will put Canada in a competitive position in developing bioeconomy worldwide.