(624f) Catalytic Production of Aviation Fuel Hydrocarbons from Softwood Derived Lignin

Aviation biofuels contain narrow suites of hydrocarbons, critically hampering their blend volume potential. Preserving ideal hydrocarbon ratios in aviation fuel is of paramount significance, as it also serves as a lubricant, coolant and sealant in jet engines. We have demonstrated a catalytic process for producing aviation range hydrocarbons from Softwood lignin. Notably, 4-of-6 hydrocarbon classes inherent to aviation fuel can be directly generated from the process – 2 of which, aromatics and cycloalkanes – have no other apparent basis for production at suitable carbon-chain lengths and tunable ratios using biomass feedstocks. The impetus of this work is to use targeted fundamentals to hone the aqueous phase catalysis of depolymerized reactive lignin from softwood lignin into aliphatic, aromatic and cyclic hydrocarbons (AACHs).