(image: Korea Bizwire)
SEOUL, May 19 (Korea Bizwire) — A research team from the Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER) said Thursday they have developed technology capable of converting agricultural waste, such as corn cobs, into levulinic acid.
This acid serves as an intermediate material for aviation biofuel production.
Levulinic acid is the final oxidized form derived from sugar components found in biomass. It serves as a suitable intermediate material for various transportation biofuels, including aviation biofuel and bioplastics.
Unlike previous studies that employed edible seaweed like sea string and gulfweed as the primary material, the KIER researchers utilized corn cobs, a type of woody biomass.
This novel approach yielded a production rate of levulinic acid of 20 percent, the KIER said.
The research team further highlighted that through statistical optimization of the acid catalyst density, response temperature, and duration, they successfully enhanced the production yield rate of levulinic acid derived from corn cobs.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
