Richard L. Smith, Jr. – författare

Conversion of biomass into chemicals and biofuels is an active research and development area as trends move to replace traditional fossil fuels with renewable resources. By integrating processing methods with microwave and ultrasound irradiation into biorefineries, the time-scale of many operations can be greatly reduced while the efficiency of the reactions can be remarkably increased so that process intensification can be achieved. “Production of Biofuels and Chemicals with Microwave” and “Production of Biofuels and Chemicals with Ultrasound” are two independent volumes in the Biofuels and Biorefineries series that take different, but complementary approaches for the pretreatment and chemical transformation of biomass into chemicals and biofuels.

The volume “Microwave” provides current research advances and prospects in theoretical and practical aspects of microwave irradiation including properties, effects and temperature monitoring, design of chemical reactors, synergistic effects on combining microwave, ultrasound, hydrodynamic cavitation and high-shear mixing into processes, chemical and catalytic conversion of lignin into chemicals, pyrolysis and gasification, syngas production from wastes, platform chemicals, algal biodiesel, cellulose-based nanocomposites, lignocellulosic biomass pretreatment, green chemistry metrics and energy consumption and techno-economic analysis for a catalytic pyrolysis facility that processes pellets into aromatics. Each of the 12 chapters has been peer-reviewed and edited to improve both the quality of the text and the scope and coverage of the topics. Both volumes “Microwave” and “Ultrasound” are references designed for students, researchers, academicians and industrialists in the fields of chemistry and chemical engineering and include introductory chapters to highlight present concepts of the fundamental technologies and their application.

Dr. Zhen Fang is Professor in Bioenergy, Leaderand founder of biomass group, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden and is also adjunct Professor of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China.Dr. Richard L Smith, Jr. is Professor of Chemical Engineering, Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Research Center of Supercritical Fluid Technology, Tohoku University, Japan.Dr. Xinhua Qi is Professor of Environmental Science, Nankai University, China.

Conversion of biomass into chemicals and biofuels is an active research and development area as trends move to replace traditional fossil fuels with renewable resources. By integrating processing methods with ultrasound and microwave irradiation into biorefineries, the time-scale of many operations can be greatly reduced while the efficiency of the reactions can be remarkably increased so that process intensification can be achieved. “Production of Biofuels and Chemicals with Ultrasound” and “Production of Biofuels and Chemicals with Microwave” are two independent volumes in the Biofuels and Biorefineries series that take different, but complementary approaches for the pretreatment and chemical transformation of biomass into chemicals and biofuels.

The volume “Ultrasound” provides current research advances and prospects in mechanistic principles of acoustic cavitation in sonochemistry, physical and chemical mechanisms in biofuel synthesis, reactor design for transesterification and esterification reactions, lipid extraction from algal biomass, microalgae extraction, biodiesel and bioethanol synthesis, practical technologies and systems, pretreatment of biomass waste sources including lignocellulosic materials, manures and sludges for biogas production, vibration-assisted pelleting, combined chemical-mechanical methods, valorization of starch-based wastes and  techno-economic methodology.  Each of the 12 chapters has been peer-reviewed and edited to improve both the quality of the text and the scope and coverage of the topics.  Both volumes “Ultrasound” and “Microwave” are references designed for students, researchers, academicians and industrialists in the fields of chemistry and chemical engineering and include introductory chapters to highlight present concepts of the fundamental technologies and their application.

Dr. Zhen Fang is Professor in Bioenergy, Leader and founder of biomass group, Chinese Academy of Sciences,

Dr. Richard L Smith, Jr. is Professor of Chemical Engineering, Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Research Center of Supercritical Fluid Technology, Tohoku University, Japan.

Dr. Xinhua Qi is Professor of Environmental Science, Nankai University, China.

This book provides state-of-the-art reviews, current research on and the prospects of lignin production, biological, thermal and chemical conversion methods, and lignin technoeconomics.  Fundamental topics related to lignin chemistry, properties, analysis, characterization, and depolymerization mechanisms, as well as enzymatic, fungal and bacterial degradation methods are covered. The book also examines practical topics related to technologies for lignin and ultra-pure lignin recovery, activated carbon, carbon fiber production and materials, and addresses the biological conversion of lignin with fungi, bacteria or enzymes to produce chemicals, along with chemical, catalytic, thermochemical and solvolysis conversion methods.  Lastly, it presents a case study on practical polyurethane foam production using lignin. 

Lignin has a bright future and will be an essential feedstock for producing renewable chemicals, biofuels and value-added products. Offering comprehensive information on this promising material, the book represents a valuable resource for students, researchers, academicians and industrialists in the field of biochemistry and energy.

This book provides state-of-the-art reviews, the latest research, prospects and challenges of the production of platform chemicals such as C6 sugars, 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, furfural, gamma-valerolactone, xylitol, 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid, levulinic acid, ethanol and others from sustainable biomass resources using processes that include heterogeneous catalysis, ionic liquids, hydrothermal/solvothermal, electrochemical and fermentation methods. It also discusses the application of these chemicals and their derivatives for synthesizing commodity chemicals via various routes. Intended as a reference resource for researchers, academicians and industrialists in the area of energy, chemical engineering and biomass conversion, it provides a wealth of information essential for assessing the production and application of various biomass-derived platform chemicals using biological, chemical and electrochemical techniques. 

This book provides state-of-the-art reviews, current research, prospects and challenges of the production of biofuels and chemicals such as furanic biofuels, biodiesel, carboxylic acids, polyols and others from lignocellulosic biomass, furfurals, syngas and γ-valerolactone with bifunctional catalysts, including catalytic, and combined biological and chemical catalysis processes. The bifunctionality of catalytic materials is a concept of not only using multifunctional solid materials as activators, but also design of materials in such a way that the catalytic materials have synergistic characteristics that promote a cascade of transformations with performance beyond that of mixed mono-functional catalysts. This book is a reference designed for researchers, academicians and industrialists in the area of catalysis, energy, chemical engineering and biomass conversion. Readers will find the wealth of information contained in chapters both useful and essential, for assessing the production and application of various biofuels and chemicals by chemical catalysis and biological techniques.

This book presents a collection of studies on state-of-art techniques developed specifically for lignocellulose component derivation, and for the production of functional materials, composite polymers, carbonaceous biocatalysts, and pellets from lignocellulosic biomass, with an emphasis on using sustainable chemistry and engineering to develop innovative materials and fuels for practical application.  Technological strategies for the physical processing or biological conversion of biomass for material production are also presented. All chapters were contributed by respected experts in the field from around the globe, providing a broad range of perspectives on cutting-edge applications.

The book offers an ideal reference guide for academic researchers and industrial engineers in the fields of natural renewable materials, biorefinery of lignocellulose, biofuels and environmental engineering. It can also be used as a comprehensive reference source for university students inchemical engineering, material science and environmental engineering.

This book presents a collection of studies on state-of-art techniques for converting biomass to chemical products by means of pyrolysis, which are widely applicable to the valorization of biomass. In addition to discussing the fundamentals and mechanisms for producing bio-oils, chemicals, gases and biochar using pyrolysis, it outlines key reaction parameters and reactor configurations for various types of biomass. Written by leading experts and providing a broad range of perspectives on cutting-edge applications, the book is a comprehensive reference guide for academic researchers and industrial engineers in the fields of natural renewable materials, biorefinery of lignocellulose, biofuels, and environmental engineering, and a valuable resource for university students in the fields of chemical engineering, material science and environmental engineering.

Aimed at improving the awareness of effective conversion protocols and for developing innovative biomass conversion processes, this text was conceived as a collection of studies on state-of-art techniques and know-how for production of biofuels and chemicals from sustainable recycling of organic solid wastes.  Topics in the text are discussed in terms of addressing recent advances, assessing and highlighting promising new methods or new technological strategies and direct conversion of organic solid wastes to process feeds. Highly-recognized authorities, experts and professionals have contributed individual chapters in selected areas to cover the overall topic in a comprehensive manner.