Structural Characterization of Wheat Straw Lignin as Revealed by Analytical Pyrolysis, 2D-NMR, and Reductive Cleavage Methods

The structure of the lignin in wheat straw has been investigated by a combination of analytical pyrolysis, 2D-NMR, and derivatization followed by reductive cleavage (DFRC). It is a p-hydroxyphenyl-guaiacyl-syringyl lignin (with an H:G:S ratio of 6:64:30) associated with p-coumarates and ferulates. 2D-NMR indicated that the main substructures present are β-O-4′-ethers (∼75%), followed by phenylcoumarans (∼11%), with lower amounts of other typical units. A major new finding is that the flavone tricin is apparently incorporated into the lignins. NMR and DFRC indicated that the lignin is partially acylated (∼10%) at the γ-carbon, predominantly with acetates that preferentially acylate guaiacyl (12%) rather than syringyl (1%) units; in dicots, acetylation is predominantly on syringyl units. p-Coumarate esters were barely detectable (<1%) on monomer conjugates released by selectively cleaving β-ethers in DFRC, indicating that they might be preferentially involved in condensed or terminal structures.