Sustainable production of platform chemicals with a circular economy approach: leveraging the role of coconut byproducts (Cocos nucifera) in a biorefinery context

• Grant number: 24/06628-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Effective date (Start): December 01, 2024
• Effective date (End): July 31, 2028
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Food Science and Technology - Food Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Tânia Forster Carneiro
• Grantee: Vanessa Cosme Ferreira
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia de Alimentos (FEA). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 18/14938-4 - Waste2energy: integration of supercritical technologies and anaerobic digestion through an automated system for the production of biofuel precursors, AP.JP2

Abstract

The food industry generates a large amount of agro-industrial waste, posing challenges for the sustainable management of these materials. Transforming waste into bioproducts such as 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (5-HMF) promotes the circular economy by adding value and reducing carbon footprint. The project aims to evaluate the valorization of coconut agro-industrial waste through subcritical water extraction technology, with hydrolysis for the production of bioenergy, biocompounds (including 5-HMF and BHMF), and biopolymers. Coconut biomass will be characterized and then subjected to the extraction process to obtain bioactive compounds. Subsequently, through hydrolysis via subcritical technology, 5-HMF will be produced, and the hydrolysate will be characterized and purified using various biosorbents. After the purification process, 5-HMF will undergo hydrogenation in an autoclave to promote the formation of 2,5-bis(hydroxymethyl)furan (BHMF), which will later be used in the synthesis of biopolymers. Finally, circular economy concepts will be applied through all mass and energy balance calculations, establishing a methodology based on the combination of biorefinery concepts, circular bioeconomy, and sustainability. This approach can contribute to the replacement of conventional polymers derived from fossil sources with renewable alternatives. (AU)