Hemicoat
The main objective of the HEMICOAT project is to recover the value of hemicelluloses, by-products of paper pulp manufacture but also of other lignocellulosic biomasses of agro-industrial origin, in order to obtain high value-added biobased chemicals for durable coatings, adhesives and functionalised additives.
At present, there is no large-scale way of recovering hemicelluloses. However, the C5 sugars derived from hemicellulose can be transformed into interesting compounds such as itaconic acid. This acid is considered to be one of the main high value-added chemical products derived from biomass. The main reactivity advantages of itaconic acid are its bi-functionality and unsaturation, which open up a very broad field for polymerisation and functionalisation. During the project, a hemicellulose processing cascade will be developed, including fermentation and purification processes, in order to obtain building blocks for the chemical synthesis of surfactants, polymers and other biobased reagents and molecules.
The results obtained as part of the HEMICOAT project will benefit a variety of small and medium-sized enterprises and may also lead to more ambitious technological breakthroughs for industrial players wishing to replace their commonly used reagents and materials with low environmental impact biobased alternatives.
Process Flow:
MATERIA NOVA'S MISSION :
Materia Nova's research focuses on the purification of itaconic acid using highly efficient, low-cost and scalable processes based on techniques such as crystallisation, filtration, centrifugation, precipitation, membrane separation, evaporation and drying. Qualitative and quantitative determinations of purification efficiency are obtained using Materia Nova's analytical platform, including infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA).
Research activities are also focused on the development of functionalized biosourced coatings based on purified itaconic acid. The focus is on their mechanical, surface-active, barrier and antibacterial properties, as well as their flame-retardant properties. Reference protocols are being established with commercially available itaconic acid, with a view to carrying out a comparative study with purified itaconic acid. The emphasis is on the synthesis of new low molecular weight itaconic acid derivatives by esterification and functionalization. The objectives also include the synthesis of innovative high molecular weight itaconic acid derivatives such as oligomers and polymers suitable for coating applications. Finally, the potential of itaconic acid will be assessed as a biobased alternative to a variety of building blocks and petroleum-based chemicals such as acrylic and methacrylic acid or maleic anhydride. The reaction kinetics and efficiency, as well as the chemical structure and functional properties of the synthesised molecules, will be compared in order to assess the potential of purified itaconic acid compared with commercial products.
PARTNERS :Dechema, DBFZ, Celabor, Materia Nova
CONTACT :
Jevgenij Lazko
Jevgenij.lazko@materianova.be
+32 65 55 4977