Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Exhibit Hall
Recently, deep eutectic solvents (DESs), a new type of ionic solvents, have been used in a wide variety of applications due to unique properties such as low volatility, high polarity, less toxicity, and good biocompatibility. In this study, the choline chloride-based DESs were studied by mixing with ethylene glycol and glycerol as hydrogen donors for directly liquefaction of Japanese cedar sawdust in the presence of acid catalyst under mild condition. Based on adjusting the parameters of reaction temperature, reaction time, and amount of acid catalyst, the influence on the sawdust liquefaction yield were investigated. The results showed that the liquefaction yield was up to 80% after sawdust was liquefied in the choline chloride-based DES at 150°C for 30 minutes. However, the liquefaction yield is decreased with increasing the reaction temperature due to generation of minor products. In addition, the sawdust liquefaction yield can be improved by increasing the amount of catalyst, but increasing reaction time does not significantly influence the liquefaction yield. Therefore, these findings suggest that the choline chloride-based DESs are an efficient medium for liquefaction of woods with improved liquefaction yield under mild conditions.