Production of levulinic acid and use as a platform chemical for derived products

Levulinic acid (LA) can be produced cost effectively and in high yield from renewable feedstocks in a new industrial process. The technology is being demonstrated on a I ton/day scale at a facility in South Glens Falls, New York. Low cost LA can be used as a platform chemical for the production of a wide range of value-added products. This research has demonstrated that LA can be converted to methyltetrahydrofuran (MTHF), a solvent and fuel extender. MTHF is produced in >80% molar yield via a single stage catalytic hydrogenation process. A new preparation of delta-aminolevulinic acid (DALA), a broad spectrum herbicide, from LA has also been developed. Each step in this new process proceeds in high (> 80%) yield and affords DALA (as the hydrochloride salt) in > 90% purity, giving a process that could be commercially viable. LA is also being investigated as a starting material for the production of diphenolic acid (DPA), a direct replacement for bisphenol A. (C) 2000 ACEEE Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.