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Mass Transport of Lignin in Confined Pores

Ghaffari, Roujin ; Almqvist, Henrik LU ; Nilsson, Robin ; Lidén, Gunnar LU and Larsson, Anette (2022) In Polymers 14(10).
Abstract

A crucial step in the chemical delignification of wood is the transport of lignin fragments into free liquor; this step is believed to be the rate-limiting step. This study has investigated the diffusion of kraft lignin molecules through model cellulose membranes of various pore sizes (1–200 nm) by diffusion cells, where the lignin molecules diffuse from donor to acceptor cells through a membrane, where diffusion rate increases by pore size. UV–vis spectra of the donor solutions showed greater absorbance at higher wavelengths (~450 nm), which was probably induced by scattering due to presence of large molecules/clusters, while acceptor samples passed through small pore membranes did not. The UV–vis spectra of acceptor solutions show a... (More)

A crucial step in the chemical delignification of wood is the transport of lignin fragments into free liquor; this step is believed to be the rate-limiting step. This study has investigated the diffusion of kraft lignin molecules through model cellulose membranes of various pore sizes (1–200 nm) by diffusion cells, where the lignin molecules diffuse from donor to acceptor cells through a membrane, where diffusion rate increases by pore size. UV–vis spectra of the donor solutions showed greater absorbance at higher wavelengths (~450 nm), which was probably induced by scattering due to presence of large molecules/clusters, while acceptor samples passed through small pore membranes did not. The UV–vis spectra of acceptor solutions show a characteristic peak at around 350 nm, which corresponds to ionized conjugated molecules: indicating that a chemical fractionation has occurred. Size exclusion chromatography (SEC) showed a difference in the molecular weight (Mw) distribution between lignin from the donor and acceptor chambers. The results show that small pore sizes enable the diffusion of small individual molecules and hinder the transport of large lignin molecules or possible lignin clusters. This study provides more detail in understanding the mass transfer events of pulping processes.

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author
; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
delignification, diffusion, fractionation, kraft lignin, mass transport, pulping
in
Polymers
volume
14
issue
10
article number
1993
publisher
MDPI AG
external identifiers
  • scopus:85130586408
  • pmid:35631876
ISSN
2073-4360
DOI
10.3390/polym14101993
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
51547acf-f29e-4471-bcf8-1da6f678a7ae
date added to LUP
2023-01-03 14:48:45
date last changed
2024-06-13 16:11:13
@article{51547acf-f29e-4471-bcf8-1da6f678a7ae,
  abstract     = {{<p>A crucial step in the chemical delignification of wood is the transport of lignin fragments into free liquor; this step is believed to be the rate-limiting step. This study has investigated the diffusion of kraft lignin molecules through model cellulose membranes of various pore sizes (1–200 nm) by diffusion cells, where the lignin molecules diffuse from donor to acceptor cells through a membrane, where diffusion rate increases by pore size. UV–vis spectra of the donor solutions showed greater absorbance at higher wavelengths (~450 nm), which was probably induced by scattering due to presence of large molecules/clusters, while acceptor samples passed through small pore membranes did not. The UV–vis spectra of acceptor solutions show a characteristic peak at around 350 nm, which corresponds to ionized conjugated molecules: indicating that a chemical fractionation has occurred. Size exclusion chromatography (SEC) showed a difference in the molecular weight (M<sub>w</sub>) distribution between lignin from the donor and acceptor chambers. The results show that small pore sizes enable the diffusion of small individual molecules and hinder the transport of large lignin molecules or possible lignin clusters. This study provides more detail in understanding the mass transfer events of pulping processes.</p>}},
  author       = {{Ghaffari, Roujin and Almqvist, Henrik and Nilsson, Robin and Lidén, Gunnar and Larsson, Anette}},
  issn         = {{2073-4360}},
  keywords     = {{delignification; diffusion; fractionation; kraft lignin; mass transport; pulping}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{10}},
  publisher    = {{MDPI AG}},
  series       = {{Polymers}},
  title        = {{Mass Transport of Lignin in Confined Pores}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/polym14101993}},
  doi          = {{10.3390/polym14101993}},
  volume       = {{14}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}