RENEWABLE ROUTE TO CYMENE FROM NON-FOOD LEAF BIOMASS USING CALCIUM HYDROXIDE CATALYSIS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33003/fjs-2026-1005-4896Keywords:
Cymene production, Gmelina arborea biomass, Mild thermal catalysisAbstract
The growing demand for sustainable aromatic platform chemicals has intensified research into biomass-derived production pathways. This study investigates the mild thermal ethanolytic catalytic conversion of lignocellulosic Gmelina arborea leaf biomass into cymene using calcium hydroxide as an inexpensive alkaline catalyst under near-ambient pressure conditions. A Box-Behnken experimental design based on Response Surface Methodology was employed to evaluate the effects of temperature (40-60 °C), reaction time (40-60 min), and catalyst loading (1-2 %) on biomass depolymerisation, cymene selectivity, and process reproducibility. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis revealed cymene yields ranging from 1.30 % to 7.72 % (of the filtrate) corresponding to specific yields of 64.55-198.40 mg/g biomass. Moderate reaction conditions (50 °C, 50 min, 1.5 % catalyst) provided the most stable and reproducible performance, with a mean yield of 159.73 mg/g and an excellent coefficient of variation of 0.61 %. Analysis of variance confirmed that temperature, reaction time, and catalyst loading significantly influence cymene formation, with temperature exerting the strongest effect. The results demonstrate that selective aromatisation of hydrolysis intermediates, rather than total biomass liquefaction, governs cymene yield. Compared with conventional petrochemical and high-severity terpene-upgrading routes, the proposed process offers a simple, energy-efficient pathway to produce valuable aromatic hydrocarbons from non-food biomass residues. This work advances sustainable biomass valorisation strategies and supports the development of green catalytic processes for the production of renewable chemicals.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Haruna Ibrahim, Abubakar M. Ali, Fatima Mukthar Hussaini
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