title: Hydrothermal Conversion of Giant Reed to Furfural and Levulinic Acid: Optimization of the Process under Microwave Irradiation and Investigation of Distinctive Agronomic Parameters.
abstract: The hydrothermal conversion of giant reed (Arundo donax L.) to furfural (FA) and levulinic acid (LA) was investigated in the presence of dilute hydrochloric acid. FA and LA yields were improved by univariate optimization of the main reaction parameters: concentration of the acid catalyst, solid/liquid ratio of the reaction mixture, hydrolysis temperature, and reaction time. The catalytic performances were investigated adopting the efficient microwave (MW) irradiation, allowing significant energy and time savings. The best FA and LA yields were further confirmed using a traditionally heated autoclave reactor, giving very high results, when compared with the literature. Hydrolysis temperature and time were the main reaction variables to be carefully optimized: FA formation needed milder reaction conditions, while LA more severe ones. The effect of the crop management (e.g., harvest time) on FA/LA production was discussed, revealing that harvest time was not a discriminating parameter for the further optimization of both FA and LA production, due to the very high productivity of the giant reed throughout the year. The promising results demonstrate that giant reed represents a very interesting candidate for a very high contemporary production of FA and LA of up to about 70% and 90% of the theoretical yields, respectively.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry, University of Pisa, Via Giuseppe Moruzzi 13, Pisa 56124, Italy. claudia.antonetti@unipi.it.
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Antonetti
authors.affiliation: Land Lab, Institute of Life Sciences, Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, P.za Martiri della Libertà 33, Pisa 56127, Italy. enrico.bonari@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Enrico
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bonari
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry, University of Pisa, Via Giuseppe Moruzzi 13, Pisa 56124, Italy. domenico.licursi@virgilio.it.
authors.forename: Domenico
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Licursi
authors.affiliation: Land Lab, Institute of Life Sciences, Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, P.za Martiri della Libertà 33, Pisa 56127, Italy. n.nassiodinasso@sssup.it.
authors.forename: Nicoletta
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nassi O Di Nasso
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and Industrial Chemistry, University of Pisa, Via Giuseppe Moruzzi 13, Pisa 56124, Italy. anna.maria.raspolli.galletti@unipi.it.
authors.forename: Anna Maria
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Raspolli Galletti
mesh_terms: D002384:Catalysis; D018556:Crops, Agricultural; D005662:Furaldehyde / Q000378:metabolism*; D006868:Hydrolysis; D007982:Levulinic Acids / Q000378:metabolism*; D008872:Microwaves; D006109:Poaceae / Q000737:chemistry*; D013696:Temperature
chemical_list: D007982:Levulinic Acids; D005662:Furaldehyde; C032246:levulinic acid
keywords: dilute hydrochloric acid; furfural; giant reed; homogeneous catalysis; hydrothermal process; levulinic acid; microwave