LIGNIN-BASED BIOPRODUCTS

• Sponsoring Institution: National Institute of Food and Agriculture
• Project Status: COMPLETE
• Funding Source: MCINTIRE-STENNIS
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 1006038
• Project Start Date: Jul 1, 2015
• Project End Date: Feb 14, 2017
• Program Code: [(N/A)]- (N/A)

Recipient Organization
MISSISSIPPI STATE UNIV
(N/A)
MISSISSIPPI STATE,MS 39762

Performing Department
Forest Products

Non Technical Summary
Many polymer industries are looking for ways to replace petrochemical feedstock with renewable raw materials if proven to be cost-effective with similar performance. With availability of lignin in large quantity as a result of bioethanol production, now is the best time for wood scientists to find application for lignin by developing new bioproducts [1]. To achieve the performance that petrochemicals have today, we need an extensive worldwide research focus to gradually convince industry to replace petrochemicals with biobased materials. The heterogeneous nature of biological materials with significant variations in their property depending on the source and isolation process make this line of research even more complex than petrochemicals. The aim of proposed work is to develop lignin-based resins for formulation of sustainable adhesive, coating and foam. Using lignin as a sustainable material to make resin would be cheaper, create a value-added material from what is today largely treated as a waste product, and reduces the consumption of non-renewable resources.

Animal Health Component

20%

Research Effort Categories

Basic

30%

Applied

20%

Developmental

50%

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
511	0650	2000	50%
403	0660	2020	50%

Knowledge Area
511 - New and Improved Non-Food Products and Processes; 403 - Waste Disposal, Recycling, and Reuse;

Subject Of Investigation
0660 - Paper and pulp derived products; 0650 - Wood and wood products;

Field Of Science
2020 - Engineering; 2000 - Chemistry;

Keywords

lignin

resin

adhesive

coating

biobased

biopolymer

Goals / Objectives
The main objectives of the proposed project can be summarized as:Develop environmentally friendly methods of modifying lignin to improve its reactivity, solubility and homogeneityFormulate sustainable lignin-based resin for adhesive, coating and foam applicationsCorrelate lignin chemistry with resin properties and optimize the formulations of final adhesiveDemonstrate that adhesive derived from lignin can be used for production of engineered wood products

Project Methods
Lignin samples from different feed stocks (hardwoods, softwoods and agricultural plants) isolation processes will be completely characterized by measuring their physical, chemical and thermal properties. Measuring properties of lignin samples would help us to select appropriate lignin needed for resin development. Then, lignin will be modified using ionic liquid as green solvent to potentially increase the number of hydroxyl groups in the lignin structure. The next step after choosing proper lignin and modification is to formulate resin. For example, in phenolic resin formulation, lignin will be mixed with formaldehyde under alkaline condition to formulate phenolic resin (Resol). While for polyurethane resin, lignin will be mixed with isocyanate to formulate 1K polyurethane resin. Since there is a wide variety of isocyanates available in the market, we need to find a suitable isocyanate probably an aliphatic isocyanate that would also help to improve the flexibility of produced resin by lowering the glass transition temperature of the final product. The property of formulated resin like viscosity, pH, contact angle and solid-content will be determined. Based on the analysis results, the property of developed resin will be adjusted to match the requirements of industry.Although the developed resins could be used in adhesive, coating and foam application, but at this stage we will only focus on formulating adhesives for wood composite products. Depending on the manufacturing processes and required performance by industry, we need to optimize the formulation of adhesive to meet those standards. For instance, the data obtained from Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), will be used to adjust the curing characteristic of formulated adhesive. If the curing temperature is high, then we would need to go back to formulation and find a way to reduce the curing temperature to what is used in press during particle board panels manufacturing. The formulated adhesive will be used to prepare small scale plywood, particle board or oriented strand board (OSB) samples. The mechanical properties of bio-based boards like tensile, flexural and impact strength will be determined as a measure of quality of formulated adhesive. The results of this study will open up a great value-added opportunity for lignin manufacturers and wooden products by using a green adhesive.

Progress 07/01/15 to 02/14/17

Outputs
Target Audience:Target audiences Pulp and Paper, Bioethanol and Adhesive industry Efforts Teaching "Adhesives and Coatings" course to graduate students Teaching "Biomass to Bioproducts" Course to undergraduate students Changes/Problems:The project will be terminated, because the PI will be moving to Michigan State University on November 1st, 2016. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The PhD student working on this project was applied and selected for Green chemistry workshop training. She attended a week of Green Chemistry workshop that was held in Colorado, by American Chemical Society, June 2016. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Isal Kalami, the PhD student working on this project will present her updated results at the 4th International Conference on Processing Technologies for the Biobased Products Industries, Oct 24-25, 2016, St. Simons Island, GA What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? major activities completed; Formulated 100% lignin-based adhesive, Measured resin and adhesive properties Analyzed and compare the performance of formulated biobased adhesive along with a commercially formulated Phenol resorcinol formaldehyde adhesive. significant results achieved, including major findings, developments, or conclusions (both positive and negative); We were able to successfully formulate a lignin-based phenolic adhesive for application of engineered wood products. All the previous researcher were able only to replace up to 50% of phenol with lignin and we are the first that replaced 100% of phenol with lignin and formulated lignin-based adhesive had similar mechanical strength, and curing as of commercially available adhesive made entirely with fossil-fuel based products.

Publications

• Type: Journal Articles Status: Submitted Year Published: 2016 Citation: Kalami, I., Arefmanesh, M., Master, E., and Nejad, M., Development of 100% Lignin-based Phenolic Adhesive for Application in Wood Products, Submitted to Journal of Green chemistry, 2016.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Kalami, I., Arefmanesh, M., Master, E., and Nejad, M., Lignin-Based Adhesive for Engineered Wood Products In proceedings of the 47th International Research Group on Wood Protection, May, 2016

Progress 07/01/15 to 09/30/15

Outputs
Target Audience:Pulp and Paper, Bioethanol and Adhesive industry Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Trainedgraduate student to perform lignin characterization and adhesive formulation in the lab How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Hire another PhD student, and one part-time undergraduate student for this project Start formulating lignin-based resin and optimize the process conditions such as temperature, pH, and time Present the project results at the scientific meetings Provide technical training for biopolymer characterization to graduate and undergraduate students in the lab

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Obtained lignin and commercial resin samples from different industries, and other necessary items for the lab

Publications