Study of the potential of gamma-valerolactone as green solvent and (bio)fuel additive through liquid-liquid equilibria

Author(s)

Lucas Farias Falcchi Corrêa

• Document type: Master's Dissertation
• Press: Campinas, SP.
• Institution: Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Faculdade de Engenharia Química
• Defense date: 2018-12-06

Examining board members

Roberta Ceriani; Klicia Araujo Sampaio; Patrícia Fazzio Martins Martinez; Guilherme José Maximo; Luís Fernando Mercier Franco

• Advisor: Rafael de Pelegrini Soares; Roberta Ceriani

Abstract

As new feedstock and production processes are explored, unconventional chemical compounds may interest both the industrial and the scientific sectors. During the last decade, novel studies on 'gama'-valerolactone have demonstrated its broad range of applicability and, consequently, have set in motion works regarding the synthesis, application and physical description of this molecule and its systems. Particularly, the compound is an efficient solvent for lignocellulosic pretreatment and can be used during the production of polymers from biomass. Hence, this work focuses on determining experimental binary and ternary liquid-liquid equilibrium data for systems containing 'gama'-valerolactone, 'eta'-tetradecane and (butanoic acid or hexanoic acid or methyl myristate or triacetin). This was accomplished by using a indirect quantification methodology based on the physical properties of the mixture (density and refractive index) and the visual detection of the cloud point (miscibility limit). The results indicate a risk of phase splitting if 'gama'-valerolactone was to be used as fuel additive, especially in diesel, and they also demonstrate that this compound could be used as a solvent to extract carboxylic acids from hydrocarbon-rich streams. Binary parameters for the NRTL and UNIQUAC thermodynamic models were satisfactorily adjusted to the experimental data, with maximum global deviation of 1.1% and the predictive capacity of the F-SAC model was assessed. Moreover, the limitation of different UNIFAC versions was demonstrated, as the methods are currently unable to represent molecules containing the lactone group with the released parameters. The results of these calculations do not correspond to the experimental behavior, which demonstrates the current inability of such methods to accurately represent these systems (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 16/25734-5 - Study of the potential of gamma-valerolactone as green solvent and (bio)fuel additive through liquid-liquid equilibria
• Grantee: Lucas Farias Falcchi Corrêa
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master