270
R. S. Kalb
rapidly, under very mild conditions, while maintaining the structural integrity of the
biopolymers [41]. This attractive finding is reflected by approximately 1500 publications and 300 patent applications published to date [42] and a number of implemented
applications. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI), a
scientific partnership led by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, currently
pilots a one-pot, wash-free process for the ionic liquid pretreatment and saccharification of switchgrass, one of the leading potential biofuel feedstocks [43]. The novel
process incorporates amino acid-based ionic liquids and realizes 85–95% glucose
yields. This process represents a major step toward an integrated biorefinery in which
sugars are extracted from biomass and directly converted into fuels in a single vessel.
A prominent patent by inventors Swatloski, Rogers, and Holbrey, held by The University of Alabama [44] and licensed by BASF, pioneered the technical processing
of cellulose for fiber spinning. Metsä Spring, an innovation company of the Finnish
Metsä Group, developed an ionic liquid-based process for spinning of staple fiber
from wood-based paper pulp, a lower-quality feedstock. The Metsä process will be
commercialized in 2019. Both applications described above dissolve biopolymers
(e.g., cellulose) in the bulk phase and reshape the biopolymer by coagulation processes using anti-solvents (e.g., water). Due to the large volumes of biomass and ionic
liquids used, these processes are very cost-sensitive, and, therefore, the recycling
rate of ionic liquid is critical for commercial success. Typically, the concentration of
biopolymer does not exceed 10–20 weight %.
Natural fiber welding (NFW) has a completely different approach. By partially
dissolving or swelling naturally produced polymers (e.g., cotton, wool, or silk) and
subsequently coagulating the fiber, the yarn product exhibits properties of natural and
synthetic fibers. This revolutionary process can be used to produce novel composites
(e.g., by welding different biopolymers together, modifying surface characteristics,
and/or recycling textiles, like denim). The highly improved mechanical properties
of the resulting yarn simplify the entire textile production process. Improved properties streamline weaving, knitting, warp knitting, or felting and have the potential to redefine portions of the textile economy. For more details on this process,
see Chap. 9.
Another revolutionary process, operated by Mari Signum currently at the pilot
scale, is the extraction of chitin from shellfish. Chitin is the planet’s second most
abundant polysaccharide, after cellulose, and is found in the exoskeletons of arthropods (e.g., crustaceans and insects) as well as in fungi. Though chitin is a valuable
raw material, millions of tons of shrimp shell waste are produced globally per year
and dumped in landfills. Chitin has unique properties that have the potential to replace
traditional petrochemical plastics and to transform filtration, agriculture, animal feed,
cosmetic, packaging, textile, and medical industries. Mari Signum has successfully
implemented ionic liquids as effective, yet gentle solvents for chitin utilization at the
technical scale and has thus become the vanguard for a new, chitin-based economy.
For more details, see Chap. 4.
Chrysalix Technologies is a spin-out company from the Imperial College London developing an innovative biomass fractionation process for the supply of raw
materials to produce biofuels and sustainable platform chemicals. Softwood and
R. S. Kalb
rapidly, under very mild conditions, while maintaining the structural integrity of the
biopolymers [41]. This attractive finding is reflected by approximately 1500 publications and 300 patent applications published to date [42] and a number of implemented
applications. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI), a
scientific partnership led by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, currently
pilots a one-pot, wash-free process for the ionic liquid pretreatment and saccharification of switchgrass, one of the leading potential biofuel feedstocks [43]. The novel
process incorporates amino acid-based ionic liquids and realizes 85–95% glucose
yields. This process represents a major step toward an integrated biorefinery in which
sugars are extracted from biomass and directly converted into fuels in a single vessel.
A prominent patent by inventors Swatloski, Rogers, and Holbrey, held by The University of Alabama [44] and licensed by BASF, pioneered the technical processing
of cellulose for fiber spinning. Metsä Spring, an innovation company of the Finnish
Metsä Group, developed an ionic liquid-based process for spinning of staple fiber
from wood-based paper pulp, a lower-quality feedstock. The Metsä process will be
commercialized in 2019. Both applications described above dissolve biopolymers
(e.g., cellulose) in the bulk phase and reshape the biopolymer by coagulation processes using anti-solvents (e.g., water). Due to the large volumes of biomass and ionic
liquids used, these processes are very cost-sensitive, and, therefore, the recycling
rate of ionic liquid is critical for commercial success. Typically, the concentration of
biopolymer does not exceed 10–20 weight %.
Natural fiber welding (NFW) has a completely different approach. By partially
dissolving or swelling naturally produced polymers (e.g., cotton, wool, or silk) and
subsequently coagulating the fiber, the yarn product exhibits properties of natural and
synthetic fibers. This revolutionary process can be used to produce novel composites
(e.g., by welding different biopolymers together, modifying surface characteristics,
and/or recycling textiles, like denim). The highly improved mechanical properties
of the resulting yarn simplify the entire textile production process. Improved properties streamline weaving, knitting, warp knitting, or felting and have the potential to redefine portions of the textile economy. For more details on this process,
see Chap. 9.
Another revolutionary process, operated by Mari Signum currently at the pilot
scale, is the extraction of chitin from shellfish. Chitin is the planet’s second most
abundant polysaccharide, after cellulose, and is found in the exoskeletons of arthropods (e.g., crustaceans and insects) as well as in fungi. Though chitin is a valuable
raw material, millions of tons of shrimp shell waste are produced globally per year
and dumped in landfills. Chitin has unique properties that have the potential to replace
traditional petrochemical plastics and to transform filtration, agriculture, animal feed,
cosmetic, packaging, textile, and medical industries. Mari Signum has successfully
implemented ionic liquids as effective, yet gentle solvents for chitin utilization at the
technical scale and has thus become the vanguard for a new, chitin-based economy.
For more details, see Chap. 4.
Chrysalix Technologies is a spin-out company from the Imperial College London developing an innovative biomass fractionation process for the supply of raw
materials to produce biofuels and sustainable platform chemicals. Softwood and