Chemical Engineering May 2013 - 14

ChementatoR
(Continued from p. 12)
One-pot synthesis of sugars from biomass
R
esearchers from the group of Atsushi
Fukuoka at the Catalysis Research Center
of Hokkaido University (Sapporo; www.
cat.hokudai.ac.jp), and Showa Denko K.K.
(SDK; Tokyo, both Japan; www.sdk.co.jp)
have developed a new catalyst that efficiently
decomposes biomass into sugars. The
activated-carbon-based catalyst achieves
high yields of both C6 and C5 sugars in a
single reaction step.
To perform the saccharization, the researchers
use alkaline-treated activated carbon
(K26). The catalyst is then ball-milled
together with cellulose or biomass, such as
bagasse, in aqueous 0.012% HCl solution, and
heated to 453K. After 20 min, 80% of the celMaking
1,3-PDO from glycerin
T
lulose is depolymerized to glucose, and more
than 90% of the xylose is released as xylan.
Studies have shown that the active sites
of the carbon are weakly acidic functional
groups, in which vicinal carboxylic and phenolic
groups synergistically work for the hydrolysis
reaction. The milling serves to improve
the contact between the solid catalyst
and solid biomass, and the researchers have
shown that the new catalyst is durable. The
scientists believe the simple process and inexpensive,
readily available catalyst has potential
for utilizing wood-based cellulose for
biofuels (such as bioethanol), biodegradable
plastics (such as polylactic acid) and the artificial
sweetener, xylitol.
a domesticated crop for the
U.S. and europe; the origin
of the species is the southeastern
part of Kazakhstan.
Kultevat and Keygene will
he research groups of Keiichi Fujishige at
Tohoku University (Sendai, www.che.tohoku.ac.jp/~erec)
and Daicel Corp. (Osaka,
both Japan; www.daicel.com) have developed
a process for making 1,3-propanediol (1,3PDO)
from glycerin, a byproduct of biodieselfuel
production. The researchers improved a
catalyst developed by Fujishige to be applied
to a rather simple reaction process. They are
expecting that their catalytic synthesis is scalable
and the stable production of 1,3-PDO will
contribute to the effective utilization of byproduct
glycerin and might open a new market.
In 2010, Fujishige developed a catalyst for
the hydrogenolysis of glycerol to 1,3-PDO,
whereby a powder-type Ir-ReOx/SiO2 catalyst
is dispersed in the reaction solution. At
that time, the selectivity achieved for 1,3PDO
was 60%. Fujishige also demonstrated
that the reaction mechanism formed 1,3-PDO
via a 2,3-dihydroxypropoxide intermediate.
Now, Daicel and Fujishige have developed
a pellet-type catalyst using an optimized silica-gel
support, which enables the reaction to
take place in a simple fixed-bed reactor. The
stability of the catalyst has been improved,
and leaching of metal has been suppressed.
In a continuous fixed-bed bench-scale plant
- operating in Daicel's R&D laboratory
in Himeji since August 2012 - Daicel has
achieved similar selectivity as that found at
the university, and also confirmed that the
catalyst system maintains its activity and selectivity
after more than 300 h of continuous
operation. The researchers believe this process
is scalable as an industrial route to 1,3PDO,
and that the propanol - a byproduct of
the reaction - can be marketed as a solvent.
Sensors with a transmitter built in
L
ast month, Krohne Messtechnik GmbH
(Duisburg, Germany; www.krohne.com)
launched SmartSens, the first family of twowire,
loop-powered analytical sensors with
integrated transmitter technology. Prior
to this, analytical sensors have required
an external proprietary transmitter onsite
to deliver the sensor signals to the process
control system. Krohne has miniaturized
the transmitter and fitted it into the sensor
head, thereby eliminating sources of error
caused by false installation, cabling or configuration
of the transmitter.
The first sensors available are for pH, ORP
(oxidation-reduction potential) and conductivity,
with other process parameters to follow.
invest in the development
and commercial introduction
of new dandelion varieties
that are enriched for latex in
their roots and are suitable
for large-scale production of
natural rubber. Keygene will
be responsible for developing
new varieties using state-ofthe-art
molecular breeding
technologies while Kultevat
will develop appropriate production
practices and largescale
latex extraction and
rubber production in north
america. Keygene will use
the newly developed varieties
and its production technologies
for production of rubber
in other global locations. The
collaborators believe the " improved "
dandelions will solve
the world's need for sufficient
amounts of high-quality natural
rubber within a period of 5
to 10 years.
CO2-free H2 production?
researchers from KiT's
Karlsruhe liquid-metal laboratory
(Kalla; www.kit.edu)
and the institute for advanced
Sustainability (iaSS; Potsdam,
both germany; www.iasspotsdam.de)
have recently
started a project to investigate
a process to thermally crack
methane into hydrogen and
carbon. Part of iaSS' earth,
energy and environment (e3)
Cluster, the project aims to
produce h2 without any Co2
emissions.
at Kalla, construction
These sensors can be connected directly to
the process-control system, and feature direct
communication via 4-20-mA HART. The company
claims to be the world's first provider to
offer a direct connection from the sensor to
the process control system via a standardized
fieldbus. The digital sensors also have advantages
over traditional analog sensors in that
they can store calibration data (generated
offline) and simply be plugged into the process,
onsite. For offline calibration, the sensor
can be connected directly to a PC running
the same PACTware (FDT/DTM) as applied
in the asset-management system, using a
USB interface cable for bi-directional HART
7 communication and power supply.
14 ChemiCal engineering www.Che.Com may 2013
has begun on a liquid-metal
bubble-column reactor. The
column will be filled with liquid
metal and heated up to
1,000°C. as Ch4 is fed through
a porous disc at the bottom,
bubbles will rise upwards,
decomposing Ch4 into h2 and
carbon, which deposits on
the walls of the bubble to be
released at the top.
a similar approach was
described by researchers at
argonne national laboratory
(argonne, ill.; www.anl.gov)
about ten years ago, but the
process has not been developed
further, says KiT. ❏
http://cat.hokudai.ac.jp http://www.sdk.co.jp http://www.che.to http://hoku.ac.jp/~erec http://www.daicel.com http://www.kit.edu http://www.iass http://www.potsdam.de http://www.krohne.com http://www.anl.gov http://www.Che.Com
Chemical Engineering May 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Chemical Engineering May 2013
