Research Projects

The collaborative project aims to develop novel nanoscale catalysts for converting bio resources into liquid fuels and value-added chemicals. The project will focus on three routes of biomass processing: conversion of cellulosic biomass to levulinic acid LA, hydrogenation of bio-derived LA to gamma-valerolactone GVL, and conversion of cellulosic biomass to polyols via hydrogenolysis. The project aims to achieve higher yields and milder reaction conditions. Biofuels for the first generation are produced from sugars, starches, and vegetable oils, but the second generation is mainly produced from lignocellulosic biomass. The process of isolating sugars and the high cost of lignocellulosic biomass are still unresolved challenges. Existing methods include pyrolysis, ammonia fiber explosion, AFEX, ozonolysis, steam explosion autohydrolysis, Chemical hydrolysis, and enzymatic hydrolysis. However, these methods have drawbacks such as hazardous materials, low efficiency, poor catalyst recovery, high energy consumption, and high enzyme costs. To overcome these issues, three approaches are proposed: developing novel nano-structured magnetically active solid acid catalysts, decorating them with noble non-noble metal nanoparticles, and combining heterogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis. These catalysts can be fine-tuned to bring acidic or basic sites, allowing for one-pot sequential, domino/tandem reactions.