Self-assembled iron-containing mordenite monolith for carbon dioxide sieving.

The development of low-cost, efficient physisorbents is essential for gas adsorption and separation; however, the intrinsic tradeoff between capacity and selectivity, as well as the unavoidable shaping procedures of conventional powder sorbents, greatly limits their practical separation efficiency. Herein, an exceedingly stable iron-containing mordenite zeolite monolith with a pore system of precisely narrowed microchannels was self-assembled using a one-pot template- and binder-free process. Iron-containing mordenite monoliths that could be used directly for industrial application afforded record-high volumetric carbon dioxide uptakes (293 and 219 cubic centimeters of carbon dioxide per cubic centimeter of material at 273 and 298 K, respectively, at 1 bar pressure); excellent size-exclusive molecular sieving of carbon dioxide over argon, nitrogen, and methane; stable recyclability; and good moisture resistance capability. Column breakthrough experiments and process simulation further visualized the high separation efficiency.

Downstream processing of lignin derived feedstock into end products.

Despite the enormous research efforts in recent years regarding lignin depolymerisation and functionalisation, few commercial products are available. This review provides a summary and viewpoint of extensive research in the lignin-to-product valorisation chain, with an emphasis on downstream processing of lignin derived feedstock into end products. It starts with an introduction of available platform chemicals and polymeric derivatives generated from lignin via existing depolymerisation and functionalisation technologies. Following that, detailed analyses of various strategies for the downstream processing of lignin derived platform chemicals and materials into fuels, valued-added chemicals and functional polymers are provided. A concise techno-economic analysis of various downstream processes is conducted based on the market demand of the end product, economic potential and technological readiness, enabling the identification of processes that are potentially both economically competitive and commercially feasible, and shedding light on processes which deserve further technological development. We wish this review will stimulate further advances in the sustainable production of value-added products from lignin to integrate this invaluable "bio-waste" into the chemical/materials supply chain.