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Updated: Jan 19, 2026
Extraction of Lignin with High β-O-4 Content by Mild Ethanol Extraction and Its Effect on the Depolymerization Yield
Published on: January 7, 2019
Morphological changes of lignin during separation of wheat straw components by the hydrothermal-ethanol method
Jinbao Li1, Pan Feng2, Huijuan Xiu2
1Shaanxi University of Science & Technology, National Demonstration Center for Experimental Light Chemistry Engineering Education, Xi'an 710021, China; Shaanxi Province Key Lab of Papermaking Technology and Specialty Paper, Shaanxi University of Science & Technology, Xi'an 710021, China.
Abstract:
The separation efficiencies of wheat straw components by hydrothermal treatment and ethanol extraction have been compared. The results showed that the lignin removal rate by two-step hydrothermal-ethanol method was significantly lower than that of single-step ethanol extraction. Microscopic and adsorption studies (using SEM/AFM, XPS and pore structure analysis) showed that during the hydrothermal treatment a large lignin fraction migrated from the intercellular layer and cell wall and deposited on the fiber surface. Furthermore, the deposited lignin then spread on the fiber surface to form a lignin coating layer, which prevented its dissolution in ethanol. Without prior heating, i.e., upon a single step ethanol extraction, the massive lignin deposition was avoided, presumably due to its efficient dissolution hindering its tight binding with carbohydrate polymers on the fiber surface. Therefore, the lignin removal efficiency was drastically reduced as a result of hydrothermal treatment compared to ethanol extraction.
