As part ZEOCATALYST project, we investigated the following biomass valorization routes:
1. Catalytic hydrothermal reactions on zeolites. Our work on transformative reactions in cationic and protonic zeolites under catalytic hydrothermal treatment is an outstanding investigation of the chemical behavior of zeolites under reaction conditions. In this study, we present a molecular level understanding of possible transformations and the impact of various parameters on the hydrothermal stability of zeolites, which could be extremely useful for the designing and developing new catalytic processes for biomass conversions. In the context of zeolite-mediated heterogeneous catalytic conversion of biomass for the production of platform chemicals and fuels, diffusion limitation arising from the microporous structure and hydrothermal stability remain as the two major bottlenecks. So far, there is no clear understanding of zeolite stability in catalytic hydrothermal reactions; thus, this work is expected to improve this understanding. Our methods and investigations pave the way towards the design of stable and efficient zeolites for the catalytic conversion of biomass derived compounds.
2. Environmental remediation materials based on lignocellulose biomass. In an alternative valorization route, we explored the boron chemistry to develop cellulose based environmental remediation materials. This study provides molecular-level insights into the boron-cellulose interactions at different length scales to tailor the materials for sorption and fire retardancy. These results and understandings offer recommendations to expedite the design strategies of new biomass derived materials and are expected to stimulate further work on the fundamental understanding of cellulose based boron chemistry to facilitate functional materials. The paper has received significant attention in the conference presentations and on social media with over 5k views/impressions from across materials, nanotechnology, chemicals, pharma and higher education sectors.
3. Cellulose based functional hydrogels. By introducing chemical or physical cross links, we have successfully made multifunctional hydrogels consisting of 3D polymeric networks that can absorb and retain large amounts of water because of their hydrophilic groups. In the first step, covalent cross links are introduced in carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) by using various cross linkers such as epichlorohydrin, citric acid and boric acid that interact with the hydroxyl groups of CMCs. To enhance the mechanical strength and further tune the properties, multivalent metal cations such as Al3+ and Zn2+ are incorporated as those could interact with the carboxyl moieties present in the CMC structure. Since the presence of metal cations impart antimicrobial properties, sensing performance, high water retention capabilities and conductivity, such duel cross linked hydrogel systems could have a large number of potential applications such as drug delivery, wound healing, tissue engineering, flexible wearable devices, batteries, cosmetics and agriculture.
Overall, the project lead to 13 publications, with 3 more in preparation, 4 conference presentations, 2 MSc theses and 1 PhD (in progress) thesis, and received enormous attention on social media with over 40k views/impressions.
