अंग्रेजी
Bio-based Fuels & Chemicals (other than seaweeds)
Application Uses
  • Arylated γ-valerolactones (Agvls) moieties mainly used in agro-chemical and pharmaceutical industry
  • 4-keto esters moieties act as a chemical intermediate for preparation of 1,4-dikotones
  • 4,4-diaromatic substituted pentanoic acid and its esters have excellent scope in polymer industry
Salient Technical Features

Various Agvls prepared from LA along with different aromatics such six membered (alkoxy/thio) and five membered (Thiophene and 2-methylthiophene) 4-keto ester (phenyl 4-oxopentanoate) prepared from LA with phenol 4,4-diaromatic substituted pentanoic acid and its esters prepared from LA and its esters with 2-methylthiophene

  • Mild reaction conditions (85-150 °C)
  • Reactions under open atmosphere
  • Good conversion and yields
  • Use of recyclable heterogeneous catalysts
  • Use of excess aromatic in the reaction medium that acts as solvent and enhance the kinetics of the reaction with excellent selectivity that could be recycled
  • Good chemo- and regio- selectivity for the preparation of Agvls.
  • Good selectivity (>95%) for the preparation of 4,4-diaromatic substituted pentanoic acid along with total conversion of levulinic acid (LA)
  • The prepared products of LA have structural accessibility to develop applications in the field of pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and fuel industry.
TRL
Scale of Development:
  • Agvls tested at 10 g scale and showed good conversion/selectivity
  • 4,4-diaromatic substituted pentanoic acid (here aromatic 2-methylthiophene) is demonstrated at 25 g scale with 94% yield
Business scope & opportunity

4,4-diaromatic substituted pentanoic acid and its esters have excellent plasticizing ability and is potential alternative for commercially available DOP and BPA.

Environment Considerations
  • The invention process is eco-friendly
  • All the reactions conducted under neat conditions
  • Excess used aromatics recycled/reused
Status of Licensing
Status Commercialization
Major Raw Materials Needed

Levulinic acid

Aromatic compounds

Major Plant Equipment
  • Glass reactor with condensing assembly
  • Distillation assembly (for separation of the products) or preparative flash chromatography
Techno-Economics

Tentative Price:

LA: ₹350/Kg; Aromatics: ₹100-500/Kg

Products: ₹1000-3000/Kg (depending on the usage/field)

Technology Package

Know-how for processes of arylated LA derivatives; Demonstration of the processes; Equipment necessary for pilot scale; License fee, royalty and other financial details are available on request.

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