Author(s)

Q. WANG, N. MITSUMURA, Q. CHEN, A. SARKAR, H. KUROKAWA, K. SEKIGUCHI & K. SUGIYAMA

Abstract

The liquefaction of waste woody materials in the presence of phenol and acid catalyst is a promising method for converting waste woody materials into phenolic resin. The condensation reaction during the liquefaction process is a major problem for its practical application. The effects of various reaction conditions on the extent of the condensation reaction were investigated. The residue content, molecular weight distributions and phenol concentration were measured to investigate the condensation reaction. As a result, it was observed that the intense reaction conditions caused fast liquefaction and led to a remarkable condensation reaction. It was also found that the residue content began to increase at an earlier reaction time when a more remarkable condensation reaction occurred. These results indicated that the condensation reaction was one of the causes for too much degradation of liquefied wood molecules under intense liquefaction. The phenol concentrations in the liquefaction products were measured to investigate their effect on the condensation reaction. It was shown that the phenol concentration was 8% lower at the end of the reaction when the condensation reaction was high. It was indicated that the drop in phenol concentration suppressed the liquefaction and promoted the condensation reaction. The addition of methanol during the liquefaction process suppressed the condensation reaction. The residue content was 11% when 50% methanol was added, while it reached 66% when methanol was not added. This can be because methanol reduced the bound phenol, which could be a reaction site of condensation reaction.

Keywords

Condensation mechanism, high performance liquid chromatography, liquefaction, phenol, waste woody materials.