Evaluation of the technical and commercial feasibility of the manufacture of bio-based polyester from cellulose derived hydroxymethyl furfural

芳香化学品是塑料和生物塑料的重要组成部分，具有强度和柔韧性等功能。目前，这些化学品只能从化石石油中经济地获得。然而，木质纤维素是可从植物获得的低成本且可再生的材料，芳香族化合物可以从木质素和间接从纤维素部分获得。该项目评估了新工作的商业潜力，该工作已证明高产和高效地将纤维素衍生的化学品HMF转化为关键的新型结构单元（FDCA），用于合成生物质衍生的生物塑料PBAF。两步酶过程使用酶生物催化剂称为氧化酶，其工作在37摄氏度，水是唯一的副产品。因此，该过程具有非常绿色的凭证。该项目将评估对所用粗HMF来源和类型的敏感性，改善反应条件，并将扩大规模以生产克量的FDCA。这些将被转化为新型聚合物，并测试这些材料的性能。将对整体工艺进行技术经济评估，以评估生物塑料和更广泛的聚酯市场的商业潜力。

Aromatic chemicals are a crucial constituent of plastics and bioplastics, conveying functionality such as strength and flexibility. At present, these chemicals can only be sourced economically from fossil-oil. However, lignocellulose is a low-cost and renewable material available from plants from which aromatics can be obtained, both from lignin and indirectly from the cellulose portion. This project evaluates the commercial potential of novel work that has demonstrated high yielding and efficient conversion of a cellulose-derived chemical called HMF into a key novel building block (FDCA) for the synthesis of a biomass-derived bioplastic PBAF. The two- step enzyme process uses enzyme biocatalysts called oxidases which work at 37degC where water is the only by product. Hence the process has extremely green credentials. The project will evaluate sensitivity to the source and type of crude HMF used, improve reaction conditions and will be scaled up to produce gram quantities of FDCA. These will be converted into novel polymers and the properties of these materials tested. A techno-economic assessment of the holistic process will be carried out to evaluate the commercial potential in both the bioplastic and broader polyester markets.