Production and characterization of biopolyols and polyurethane foams from crude glycerol based liquefaction of soybean straw.

The feasibility of using crude glycerol to liquefy soybean straw for the production of biopolyols and polyurethane (PU) foams was investigated in this study. Liquefaction conditions of 240 °C, >180 min, 3% sulfuric acid loading, and 10-15% biomass loading were preferred for the production of biopolyols with promising material properties. Biopolyols produced under preferential conditions showed hydroxyl numbers from 440 to 540 mg KOH/g, acid numbers below 5 mg KOH/g, and viscosities from 16 to 45 Pa.s. PU foams produced under preferential conditions showed densities from 0.033 to 0.037 g/cm3 and compressive strength from 148 to 227 kPa. These results suggest that crude glycerol can be used as an alternative solvent for the liquefaction of lignocellulosic biomass such as soybean straw for the production of biopolyols and PU foams. The produced biopolyols and PU foams showed material properties comparable to their analogs from petroleum solvent based liquefaction processes.

[1]  Zoran S. Petrović,et al.  Polyurethanes from Vegetable Oils , 2008 .

[2]  Tatsuhiko Yamada,et al.  Characterization of the products resulting from ethylene glycol liquefaction of cellulose , 2001, Journal of Wood Science.

[3]  T. Yamada,et al.  Rapid liquefaction of lignocellulosic waste by using ethylene carbonate , 1999 .

[4]  M. Alma,et al.  New polyurethane-type rigid foams from liquified wood powders , 2003 .

[5]  Seung‐Hwan Lee,et al.  Biodegradable polyurethane foam from liquefied waste paper and its thermal stability, biodegradability, and genotoxicity , 2002 .

[6]  M. Yoshioka,et al.  Combined liquefaction of wood and starch in a polyethylene glycol/glycerin blended solvent , 1993 .

[7]  Hao Pang,et al.  Preparation and characterization of water‐blown polyurethane foams from liquefied cornstalk polyol , 2008 .

[8]  Paul Chen,et al.  Atmospheric Pressure Liquefaction of Dried Distillers Grains (DDG) and Making Polyurethane Foams from Liquefied DDG , 2008, Applied biochemistry and biotechnology.

[9]  B. Weckhuysen,et al.  Glycerol etherification over highly active CaO-based materials: new mechanistic aspects and related colloidal particle formation. , 2008, Chemistry.

[10]  M. Yoshioka,et al.  Water‐absorbing polyurethane foams from liquefied starch , 1996 .

[11]  E. Hassan,et al.  Polyhydric alcohol liquefaction of some lignocellulosic agricultural residues , 2008 .

[12]  Z. Petrović,et al.  High Functionality Polyether Polyols Based on Polyglycerol , 2010 .

[13]  Seung-Hwan Lee,et al.  Liquefaction of corn bran (CB) in the presence of alcohols and preparation of polyurethane foam from its liquefied polyol , 2000 .

[14]  A. Biswas,et al.  Esterification of Fatty Acids with Glycerol , 1960, Nature.

[15]  Duane T. Johnson,et al.  The glycerin glut: Options for the value‐added conversion of crude glycerol resulting from biodiesel production , 2007 .

[16]  Fangeng Chen,et al.  Liquefaction of wheat straw and preparation of rigid polyurethane foam from the liquefaction products , 2009 .

[17]  Paul Chen,et al.  Liquefaction of corn stover using industrial biodiesel glycerol , 2009 .

[18]  M. Alma,et al.  Preparation of polyurethane-like foams from NaOH-catalyzed liquefied wood , 1998, Holz als Roh- und Werkstoff.

[19]  A. McDonald,et al.  Polyhydroxybutyrate synthesis on biodiesel wastewater using mixed microbial consortia. , 2011, Bioresource technology.

[20]  Hui Wang,et al.  A novel method of utilizing the biomass resource: Rapid liquefaction of wheat straw and preparation of biodegradable polyurethane foam (PUF) , 2007 .

[21]  J. C. Thompson,et al.  Characterization of crude glycerol from biodiesel production from multiple feedstocks. , 2006 .