Complete lignocellulose conversion with integrated catalyst recycling yielding valuable aromatics and fuels

Lignocellulose, the main component of agricultural and forestry waste, harbours tremendous potential as a renewable starting material for future biorefinery practices. However, this potential remains largely unexploited due to the lack of strategies that derive substantial value from its main constituents. Here, we present a catalytic strategy that is able to transform lignocellulose to a range of attractive products. At the centre of our approach is the flexible use of a non-precious metal catalyst in two distinct stages of a lignocellulose conversion process that enables integrated catalyst recycling through full conversion of all process residues. From the lignin, pharmaceutical and polymer building blocks are obtained. Notably, among these pathways are systematic chemo-catalytic methodologies to yield amines from lignin. The (hemi)cellulose-derived aliphatic alcohols are transformed to alkanes, achieving excellent total carbon utilization. This work will inspire the development of fully sustainable and economically viable biorefineries. Lignocellulose is produced in large amounts as waste but offers the potential of cheap, renewable sources of organic compounds. Here, a process is shown that can derive useful products from all the main components of lignocellulose, giving complete conversion and thus enabling integrated catalyst recycling.