Production of Benzene from Lignin through Current Enhanced Catalytic Conversion

The directional production of benzene is achieved by the current-enhanced catalytic conversion of lignin. The synergistic effect between catalyst and current promotes the depolymerization of lignin and the selective recombinant of the functional groups in the aromatic monomers. A high benzene yield of 175 g_benzene/kg_lignin was obtained with an excellent selectivity of 92.9 C-mol%. The process potentially provides a promising route for the production of basic petrochemical materials or high value-added chemicals using renewable biomass.