Innovative upgrading pathways for the one-pot conversion of biomass and related substrates to alkyl levulinates: advancements and optimization.

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Title: Innovative upgrading pathways for the one-pot conversion of biomass and related substrates to alkyl levulinates: advancements and optimization.
Authors: Kim, Soolim1 (AUTHOR), Lim, Sam Yeol1 (AUTHOR), Lee, Dong-Jun2,3 (AUTHOR), Jung, Sungyup1,4 (AUTHOR) sjung001@knu.ac.kr, Lee, Jechan1,5 (AUTHOR) jechanlee@skku.edu
Source: Chemical Engineering Journal. Apr2026, Vol. 533, pN.PAG-N.PAG. 1p.
Subjects: Biomass conversion, Catalysis, Sustainable chemistry, Biomass chemicals, Chemical synthesis, Alternative fuels, Process optimization
Abstract: Alkyl levulinates (ALs) are promising biomass-derived platform molecules for the production of renewable fuels and sustainable chemicals. This review presents a comprehensive analysis of one-pot conversion strategies for AL production, emphasizing how feedstock composition, catalyst functionality, and reaction conditions jointly determine AL yield and selectivity. One-pot routes are discussed for a wide range of biomass and biomass-related feedstocks, including carbohydrates, lignocellulosic residues, food waste, and biomass-derived intermediates such as furfural, furfuryl alcohol, and levulinic acid. Sugar-based feedstocks generally afford higher AL yields owing to their relatively low structural complexity, whereas lignin-containing biomass and heterogeneous waste streams require additional hydrolysis, isomerization, and dehydration steps, which increase humin formation and reduce carbon efficiency. Reaction conditions and representative catalytic systems are systematically reviewed, demonstrating that high AL yields (up to ∼98%) and good recyclability can be achieved under mild conditions when Brønsted–Lewis acidity, active-site stabilization, and mass transport are properly balanced. Although one-pot conversion simplifies biomass valorization, challenges remain in terms of selectivity loss, humin formation, catalyst deactivation, and scale-up feasibility for complex feedstocks. Overall, this review provides mechanistic insights and practical guidelines for advancing one-pot AL synthesis toward sustainable chemical and fuel production from biomass wastes. [Display omitted] • Alkyl levulinate (AL) production from different biomass feedstocks were reviewed • Integrating one-pot syntheses of ALs from biomass raw feedstocks were discussed • Structural complexity and isomerization difficulty made low AL and high humin yield • For multiple reactions in one-pot reactor, multifunctional materials were required • Lignin-rich substrates suffered from one-pot AL synthesis [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Chemical Engineering Journal is the property of Elsevier B.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Label: Title
  Group: Ti
  Data: Innovative upgrading pathways for the one-pot conversion of biomass and related substrates to alkyl levulinates: advancements and optimization.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Kim%2C+Soolim%22">Kim, Soolim</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Lim%2C+Sam+Yeol%22">Lim, Sam Yeol</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Lee%2C+Dong-Jun%22">Lee, Dong-Jun</searchLink><relatesTo>2,3</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Jung%2C+Sungyup%22">Jung, Sungyup</searchLink><relatesTo>1,4</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> sjung001@knu.ac.kr</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Lee%2C+Jechan%22">Lee, Jechan</searchLink><relatesTo>1,5</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> jechanlee@skku.edu</i>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Chemical+Engineering+Journal%22">Chemical Engineering Journal</searchLink>. Apr2026, Vol. 533, pN.PAG-N.PAG. 1p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Biomass+conversion%22">Biomass conversion</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Catalysis%22">Catalysis</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Sustainable+chemistry%22">Sustainable chemistry</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Biomass+chemicals%22">Biomass chemicals</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Chemical+synthesis%22">Chemical synthesis</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Alternative+fuels%22">Alternative fuels</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Process+optimization%22">Process optimization</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Alkyl levulinates (ALs) are promising biomass-derived platform molecules for the production of renewable fuels and sustainable chemicals. This review presents a comprehensive analysis of one-pot conversion strategies for AL production, emphasizing how feedstock composition, catalyst functionality, and reaction conditions jointly determine AL yield and selectivity. One-pot routes are discussed for a wide range of biomass and biomass-related feedstocks, including carbohydrates, lignocellulosic residues, food waste, and biomass-derived intermediates such as furfural, furfuryl alcohol, and levulinic acid. Sugar-based feedstocks generally afford higher AL yields owing to their relatively low structural complexity, whereas lignin-containing biomass and heterogeneous waste streams require additional hydrolysis, isomerization, and dehydration steps, which increase humin formation and reduce carbon efficiency. Reaction conditions and representative catalytic systems are systematically reviewed, demonstrating that high AL yields (up to ∼98%) and good recyclability can be achieved under mild conditions when Brønsted–Lewis acidity, active-site stabilization, and mass transport are properly balanced. Although one-pot conversion simplifies biomass valorization, challenges remain in terms of selectivity loss, humin formation, catalyst deactivation, and scale-up feasibility for complex feedstocks. Overall, this review provides mechanistic insights and practical guidelines for advancing one-pot AL synthesis toward sustainable chemical and fuel production from biomass wastes. [Display omitted] • Alkyl levulinate (AL) production from different biomass feedstocks were reviewed • Integrating one-pot syntheses of ALs from biomass raw feedstocks were discussed • Structural complexity and isomerization difficulty made low AL and high humin yield • For multiple reactions in one-pot reactor, multifunctional materials were required • Lignin-rich substrates suffered from one-pot AL synthesis [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Chemical Engineering Journal is the property of Elsevier B.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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RecordInfo BibRecord:
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      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1016/j.cej.2026.174833
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        PageCount: 1
        StartPage: N.PAG
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Biomass conversion
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Catalysis
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Sustainable chemistry
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Biomass chemicals
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      – SubjectFull: Chemical synthesis
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Alternative fuels
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Process optimization
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Innovative upgrading pathways for the one-pot conversion of biomass and related substrates to alkyl levulinates: advancements and optimization.
        Type: main
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      – PersonEntity:
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            NameFull: Kim, Soolim
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            NameFull: Lim, Sam Yeol
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            NameFull: Lee, Dong-Jun
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            NameFull: Jung, Sungyup
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            NameFull: Lee, Jechan
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            – D: 01
              M: 04
              Text: Apr2026
              Type: published
              Y: 2026
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              Value: 533
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            – TitleFull: Chemical Engineering Journal
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