Within the concept of the replacement of fossil with biobased resources, bacterial polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) can be obtained from volatile fatty acids (VFAs) from agro-food waste streams and used as an intermediate toward attractive chemicals. Here we address a crucial step in this process, the conversion of PHB to methyl crotonate (MC), which can be converted via cross-metathesis with ethylene to methyl acrylate and propylene, two important monomers for the plastics industry. The conversion of PHB to MC proceeds via a thermolysis of PHB to crotonic acid (CA), followed by an esterification to MC. At pressures below 18 bar, the thermolysis of PHB to CA is the rate-determining step, where above 18 bar, the esterification of CA to MC becomes rate limiting. At 200°C and 18 bar, a full conversion and 60% selectivity to MC is obtained. This conversion circumvents processing and application issues of PHB as a polymer and allows PHB to be used as an intermediate to produce biobased chemicals. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015, 132, 42462.

Methacrylic acid, an important monomer for the plastics industry, was obtained in high selectivity (up to 84 %) by the decarboxylation of itaconic acid using heterogeneous catalysts based on Pd, Pt and Ru. The reaction takes place in water at 200–250 °C without any external added pressure, conditions significantly milder than those described previously for the same conversion with better yield and selectivity. A comprehensive study of the reaction parameters has been performed, and the isolation of methacrylic acid was achieved in 50 % yield. The decarboxylation procedure is also applicable to citric acid, a more widely available bio-based feedstock, and leads to the production of methacrylic acid in one pot in 41 % selectivity. Aconitic acid, the intermediate compound in the pathway from citric acid to itaconic acid was also used successfully as a substrate.

BACKGROUND: Amino acids are promising feedstocks for the chemical industry due to their chemical functionality. They can be obtained by the hydrolysis of potentially inexpensive protein streams such as the byproduct of biofuel production. However, individual amino acids are required before they can be used for the further production of chemicals. Here, the separation of L-aspartic acid (Asp) and L-glutamic acid (Glu) mixture, which can be isolated from protein hydrolysis solutions at low pH or from electrodialysis of complex amino acid mixtures, was studied.

RESULTS: Glu was converted into L-pyroglutamic acid (pGlu) which can be separated from the mixture of Asp and Glu due to its higher solubility in water. The conversion was carried out under aqueous or melt conditions. Under aqueous conditions, the conversion was studied as a factor of time, temperature and the amount of Glu. The conversion was specific with high yield and not effected by Asp. After pGlu was separated from Asp and residual Glu by solubility difference, it can be transferred back to Glu through hydrolysis.

CONCLUSION: The conversion of Glu to pGlu is specific and can be applied to separation Asp and Glu for their use in the production of bio-based chemicals. Copyright © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry

Succinonitrile is the precursor of 1,4-diaminobutane, which is used for the industrial production of polyamides. This paper describes the synthesis of biobased succinonitrile from glutamic acid and glutamine, amino acids that are abundantly present in many plant proteins. Synthesis of the intermediate 3-cyanopropanoic amide was achieved from glutamic acid 5-methyl ester in an 86 mol % yield and from glutamine in a 56 mol % yield. 3-Cyanopropanoic acid can be converted into succinonitrile, with a selectivity close to 100 % and a 62 % conversion, by making use of a palladium(II)-catalyzed equilibrium reaction with acetonitrile. Thus, a new route to produce biobased 1,4-diaminobutane has been discovered.