Unlocking lignin potential by selective demethylation of its monomers and oligomers.

The natural aromatic polymer lignin and its lignin-like oligomeric fragments have attracted attention for their antioxidant capacity and free radical scavenging activities. In this study, a 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay was employed to assess the antioxidant capacity of fractionated and partially depolymerized organosolv lignin by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and UV-Vis spectroscopy. The results show significant antioxidant activity for both the lignin and oligomeric fragments, with the EPR measurements demonstrating their efficiency in quenching the free radicals. The EPR data were analyzed to derive the kinetic rate constants. The radical scavenging activity (RSA) of lignins was then determined by UV-Vis spectroscopy and the results were compared with the EPR method. This two-method approach improves the reliability and understanding of the antioxidant potential of lignin and its derivatives and provides valuable insights for their potential applications in various industries, including pharmaceuticals, food preservation, and cosmetics.

The article discusses the production of platform chemicals from various biological sources, including glycerol, lignin, cellulose, bio-oils, and sea products. It presents the results of catalytic and downstream processes involved in the conversion of these biomass-derived feedstocks. The experimental approaches are complemented by numerical descriptions, ranging from density functional theory (DFT) calculations to kinetic modellingof the experimental data. This multi-scale modelling approach helps to understand the underlying mechanisms and optimize the production of platform chemicals from renewable resources.

4. mednarodna konferenca Tehnologije in poslovni modeli za krožno gospodarstvo: Zbornik konference. Fakulteta za kemijo in kemijsko tehnologijo Univerze v Mariboru je v sodelovanju s Strateško razvojno-inovacijskim partnerstvom – Mreže za prehod v krožno gospodarstvo (SRIP – Krožno gospodarstvo) organizirala 4. mednarodno strokovno/znanstveno konferenco Tehnologije in poslovni modeli za krožno gospodarstvo (Technologies & Business Models for Circular Economy; TBMCE), ki je potekala od 13. do 15. septembra 2021 v Grand Hotelu Bernardin v Portorožu. TBMCE 2021 je bila namenjena predstavitvi konceptov krožnega gospodarstva in tehnologij ter metodologij, ki prispevajo k preusmeritvi gospodarskih subjektov in družbe kot celote k bolj odgovornemu, tj. krožnemu ravnanju z viri. Konferenčni program je vključeval panelne diskusije, plenarno in uvodna predavanja, ustna predavanja in predstavitve v obliki posterjev z naslednjih področij: trajnostna energija, biomasa in alternativne surovine, krožni poslovni modeli, sekundarne surovine in funkcionalni materiali, IKT v krožnem gospodarstvu, procesi in tehnologije. Dogodek je potekal pod pokroviteljstvom Ministrstva za gospodarski razvoj in tehnologijo.