Environmentally-Benign Dimethyl Carbonate-Mediated Production of Chemicals and Biofuels from Renewable Bio-Oil

Keon Hee Kim and Eun Yeol Lee
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Keon Hee Kim: Department of Chemical Engineering, Kyung Hee University, Gyeonggi-do 17104, Korea
Eun Yeol Lee: Department of Chemical Engineering, Kyung Hee University, Gyeonggi-do 17104, Korea

Energies, 2017, vol. 10, issue 11, 1-15

Abstract: Due to the increasing emission of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), the development of fuels and chemicals based on renewable resources has attracted much attention. Bio-oil, as a carbon rich material, has been considered as a feedstock for biodiesel production. In conventional methanol-mediated transesterification of bio-oil for biodiesel production, significant amounts of glycerol are being generated as a byproduct. In order to overcome these issues, dimethyl carbonate (DMC) has been recently used as an alternative acyl acceptor to avoid the generation of glycerol. DMC is an environmentally-benign chemical reagent and reactive solvent due to safety, health, and environmental benefits. Moreover, DMC can be produced from CO 2 . Co-production of biodiesel and chemicals such as glycerol carbonate is possible as the concept of zero-waste utilization of bio-oil. Value-added chemicals can be synthesized using DMC as a reagent. This paper provides a review on the physical and chemical properties of DMC as a solvent, as well as the production methods for DMC. DMC-mediated production of various chemicals and fuels in both chemical and enzymatic processes are discussed together with their pros and cons.

Keywords: biodiesel; bio-oil; dimethyl carbonate; glycerol carbonate (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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