Photocatalytic based degradation processes of lignin derivatives

Abstract

Photocatalysis, belonging to the advanced oxidation processes (AOPs), is a potential new transformation technology for lignin derivatives to value added products (e.g., phenol, benzene, toluene, and xylene). Moreover, lignin represents the only viable source to produce aromatic compounds as fossil fuel alternative. This review covers recent advancement made in the photochemical transformation of industrial lignins. It starts with the photochemical reaction principle followed by results obtained by varying process parameters. In this context, influences of photocatalysts, metal ions, additives, lignin concentration, and illumination intensity and the influence of pH are presented and discussed. Furthermore, an overview is given on several used process analytical methods describing the results obtained from the degradation of lignin derivatives. Finally, a promising concept by coupling photocatalysis with a consecutive biocatalytic process was briefly reviewed.