A highly efficient, environmentally friendly process that selectively converts gamma-valerolactone, a biomass derivative, into the chemical equivalent of jet fuel has been developed by a team of University of Wisconsin-Madison engineers. James Dumesic, Steenbock Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering at UW-Madison, postdoctoral researchers Jesse Bond and David Martin Alonso, and graduate students Dong Wang and Ryan West were the members of research team.

About 95 percent of the energy from the original biomass is preserved in the simple process, which requires little hydrogen input, and captures carbon dioxide (CO2) under high pressure for future beneficial use.

Dumesic said,"Instead of trying to fight the degradation, we started with levulinic acid and formic acid and tried to see what we could do using that as a platform."

In the presence of metal catalysts, the two acids react to form gamma-valerolactone, or GVL, which now is manufactured in small quantities as an herbal food and perfume additive.

Dumesic's group converts aqueous solutions of GVL into jet fuel, using laboratory-scale equipment and stable, inexpensive catalysts.

Bond explained," We can pull off these two catalytic stages, as well as the requisite separation steps, in series, with basic equipment. With very minimal processing, we can produce a pure stream of jet-fuel-range alkenes and a fairly pure stream of carbon dioxide."

Alonso said," The hydrocarbons produced from GVL in this new process are chemically equivalent to those used in the present infrastructure."

He further added," The product we make is ready for the jet fuel application and can be added to existing hydrocarbon blends, as needed, to meet specs."

Now that they have demonstrated the process for converting GVL to transportation fuel, Dumesic and his students are developing more efficient methods for making GVL from biomass sources such as wood, corn stover, switchgrass and others.

He said," Once the GVL is made effectively, I think this is an excellent way to convert it to jet fuel." (With Input from Agencies)