The present study was designed to evaluate the performance of alternative bio-based solvents, more especially 2-methyltetrahydrofuran, obtained from crop's byproducts for the substitution of ...petroleum solvents such as hexane in the extraction of fat and oils for food (edible oil) and non-food (bio fuel) applications. First a solvent selection as well as an evaluation of the performance was made with Hansen Solubility Parameters and the COnductor-like Screening MOdel for Realistic Solvation (COSMO-RS) simulations. Experiments were performed on rapeseed oil extraction at laboratory and pilot plant scale for the determination of lipid yields, extraction kinetics, diffusion modeling, and complete lipid composition in term of fatty acids and micronutrients (sterols, tocopherols and tocotrienols). Finally, economic and energetic evaluations of the process were conducted to estimate the cost of manufacturing using 2-methyltetrahydrofuran (MeTHF) as alternative solvent compared to hexane as petroleum solvent.
Within the framework of green chemistry, solvents occupy a strategic place. To be qualified as a green medium, these solvents have to meet different criteria such as availability, non-toxicity, ...biodegradability, recyclability, flammability, and low price among others. Up to now, the number of available green solvents are rather limited. Here we wish to discuss a new family of ionic fluids, so-called Deep Eutectic Solvents (DES), that are now rapidly emerging in the current literature. A DES is a fluid generally composed of two or three cheap and safe components that are capable of self-association, often through hydrogen bond interactions, to form a eutectic mixture with a melting point lower than that of each individual component. DESs are generally liquid at temperatures lower than 100 °C. These DESs exhibit similar physico-chemical properties to the traditionally used ionic liquids, while being much cheaper and environmentally friendlier. Owing to these remarkable advantages, DESs are now of growing interest in many fields of research. In this review, we report the major contributions of DESs in catalysis, organic synthesis, dissolution and extraction processes, electrochemistry and material chemistry. All works discussed in this review aim at demonstrating that DESs not only allow the design of eco-efficient processes but also open a straightforward access to new chemicals and materials.
In last years, a plethora of extraction techniques has emerged as environmental-friendly alternatives to conventional extraction procedures. In this particular field, a novel class of solvents known ...as deep eutectic solvents (DES) has arisen as a new and very promising tool. Compared with conventional organic solvents, DES as well as the so-called natural deep eutectic solvents (NADES) have attracted considerable attention due to the fact that they not only are eco-friendly, non-toxic, and biodegradable organic compounds but also have a low cost, being easy to produce in the own laboratory. The present review provides a critical and organized overview of novel extraction techniques using DES as extracting solvents that were applied in food, biological and environmental sample analysis. An evaluation of how these DES/NADES could improve extraction yields of a variety of analytes and advantages and limitations of each proposal will be discussed and compared with earlier studies.
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•DES and NADES are environmentally-friendly alternative to organic solvents.•Novel applications of DES/NADES in microextraction techniques.•Recent microextraction techniques based in DES/NADES are compared with earlier approaches.•Future perspectives of DES/NADES in microextraction techniques are stated.
Conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to fuels and chemicals has attracted immense research and development around the world. Lowering recalcitrance of biomass in a cost-effective manner is a ...challenge to commercialize biomass-based technologies. Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) are new ‘green' solvents that have a high potential for biomass processing because of their low cost, low toxicity, biodegradability, easy recycling and reuse. This article discusses the properties of DESs and recent advances in their application for lignocellulosic biomass processing. The effectiveness of DESs in hydrolyzing lignin-carbohydrate complexes, removing lignin/hemicellulose from biomass as well as their effect on biomass deconstruction, crystallinity and enzymatic digestibility have been discussed. Moreover, this review presents recent findings on the compatibility of natural DESs with enzymes and microorganisms.
•Physicochemical properties of deep eutectic solvents (DESs) and its application in biomass processing•DESs potential for improved saccharification of biomass and catalytic conversion of sugars into platform molecules•Present approaches for DESs recycling and reuse•Bio-compatibility of DESs with enzymes and microorganisms
Recent advances in nonfullerene acceptors (NFAs) have enabled the rapid increase in power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of organic photovoltaic (OPV) cells. However, this progress is achieved using ...highly toxic solvents, which are not suitable for the scalable large‐area processing method, becoming one of the biggest factors hindering the mass production and commercial applications of OPVs. Therefore, it is of great importance to get good eco‐compatible processability when designing efficient OPV materials. Here, to achieve high efficiency and good processability of the NFAs in eco‐compatible solvents, the flexible alkyl chains of the highly efficient NFA BTP‐4F‐8 (also known as Y6) are modified and BTP‐4F‐12 is synthesized. Combining with the polymer donor PBDB‐TF, BTP‐4F‐12 shows the best PCE of 16.4%. Importantly, when the polymer donor PBDB‐TF is replaced by T1 with better solubility, various eco‐compatible solvents can be applied to fabricate OPV cells. Finally, over 14% efficiency is obtained with tetrahydrofuran (THF) as the processing solvent for 1.07 cm2 OPV cells by the blade‐coating method. These results indicate that the simple modification of the side chain can be used to tune the processability of active layer materials and thus make it more applicable for the mass production with environmentally benign solvents.
Eco‐compatible solvent‐processed organic photovoltaic cells with over 16% power conversion efficiency are achieved via modifying the flexible alkyl chains of BTP‐4F‐8. Combining with the polymer donor T1, over 14% power conversion efficiencies are obtained not only for using several kinds of greener solvents like o‐xylene, 1,2,4‐trimethylbenzene, and tetrahydrofuran but also for 1.07 cm2 cells by the blade‐coating method.
•Tuneability and recyclability of DESs as extraction media were demonstrated.•A new strategy to design a ternary DES was developed for maximal extraction efficiency.•Complete recovery of extracted ...ginsenosides from DES was achieved through SPE.•The developed method was much greener and more efficient than previous methods.
The present study demonstrates that deep eutectic solvents (DESs) with the highest extractability can be designed by combining effective DES components from screening diverse DESs. The extraction of polar ginseng saponins from white ginseng was used as a way to demonstrate the tuneability as well as recyclability of DESs. A newly designed ternary DES (GPS-5) composed of glycerol, l-proline, and sucrose at 9:4:1 was used as a sustainable and efficient extraction medium. Based on the anti-tumor activity on HCT-116 cancer cells, it was confirmed that GPS-5 was merely an extraction solvent with no influence of the bioactivity of the ginsenosides extracted. Excellent recovery of the extracted saponins was easily achieved through solid-phase extraction (SPE). Recycling of the DES was accomplished by simple freeze-drying of the washed solutions from the SPE. The extraction efficiencies of the DESs recycled once, twice, and thrice were 92%, 85%, and 83% of that of the freshly synthesized solvent.
Organic-solvent-tolerant bacteria are considered extremophiles with different tolerance levels that change among species and strains, but also depend on the inherent toxicity of the solvent. ...Extensive studies to understand the mechanisms of organic solvent tolerance have been done in Gram-negative bacteria. On the contrary, the information on the solvent tolerance mechanisms in Gram-positive bacteria remains scarce. Possible shared mechanisms among Gram-(−) and Gram-(+) microorganisms include: energy-dependent active efflux pumps that export toxic organic solvents to the external medium;
cis-to-
trans isomerization of unsaturated membrane fatty acids and modifications in the membrane phospholipid headgroups; formation of vesicles loaded with toxic compounds; and changes in the biosynthesis rate of phospholipids to accelerate repair processes. However, additional physiological responses of Gram-(+) bacteria to organic solvents seem to be specific. The aim of the present work is to review the state of the art of responsible mechanisms for organic solvent tolerance in Gram-positive bacteria, and their industrial and environmental biotechnology potential.
Acetic acid is one of the top commodity chemicals used in various industrial processes. The separation of acetic acid from aqueous solutions is a crucial requirement in the production units. ...Effective sequestration and recovery of acetic acid is economically beneficial and significant from value addition and environmental protection perspectives. Simple distillation procedures are not usually viable owing to the necessity of a high number of stages and large reflux ratios in the separation column. Several methods such as solvent extraction, extractive distillation, and membrane separation have been studied to retrieve acetic acid from aqueous systems. Of these methods, solvent extraction is preferred due to less consumption of energy and fast mass transfer rates. The efficiency of solvent extraction primarily depends on the solvent chosen for the extraction. The current work is focused on the review of studies that have been extensively carried out for extracting acetic acid from aqueous solutions using various pure solvents and a combination of solvents. The role of modeling and computer-aided simulation studies in the design and evaluation of separation performance is elucidated. Strategies to enhance acetic acid extraction such as salting-out and buffering-out are highlighted. Future prospects are identified to develop sustainable separation systems.
Nanofibrous hydrogels are pervasive in load‐bearing soft tissues, which are believed to be key to their extraordinary mechanical properties. Enlighted by this phenomenon, a novel reinforcing strategy ...for polymeric hydrogels is proposed, where polymer segments in the hydrogels are induced to form nanofibers in situ by bolstering their controllable aggregation at the nanoscale level. Poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogels are chosen to demonstrate the virtue of this strategy. A nonsolvent‐quenching step is introduced into the conventional solvent‐exchange hydrogel preparation approach, which readily promotes the formation of nanofibrous hydrogels in the following solvent‐tempering process. The resultant nanofibrous hydrogels demonstrate significantly improved mechanical properties and swelling resistance, compared to the conventional solvent‐exchange hydrogels with identical compositions. This work validates the hypothesis that bundling polymer chains to form nanofibers can lead to nanofibrous hydrogels with remarkably enhanced mechanical performances, which may open a new horizon for single‐component hydrogel reinforcement.
An innovative nanofibrous hydrogel (nf‐gel) constructed with constituent polymer nanofibers is proposed and fabricated using a two‐step solvent‐exchange method including an essential nonsolvent‐quenching step. These nf‐gels show remarkably enhanced mechanical properties and swelling resistance compared to their molecular counterparts. Particularly, they are isotropic, distinctly different from conventional fiber reinforced hydrogels.. .
The rapid increase of CO2 concentration in the atmosphere combined with depleted supplies of fossil fuels has led to an increased commercial interest in renewable fuels. Due to their high biomass ...productivity, rapid lipid accumulation, and ability to survive in saline water, microalgae have been identified as promising feedstocks for industrial-scale production of carbon-neutral biodiesel. This study examines the principles involved in lipid extraction from microalgal cells, a crucial downstream processing step in the production of microalgal biodiesel. We analyze the different technological options currently available for laboratory-scale microalgal lipid extraction, with a primary focus on the prospect of organic solvent and supercritical fluid extraction. The study also provides an assessment of recent breakthroughs in this rapidly developing field and reports on the suitability of microalgal lipid compositions for biodiesel conversion.
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