Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation

Technology

Method To Liquefy Biomass

A method of liquefying biomass. The method includes the steps of contacting biomass with a solution comprising an acyl halide and an acid; and then contacting the biomass with a reductant.
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John Ralph, Steven Karlen | P180250US02

Technology

Mutant Thioesterases

Mutant thioesterases having enhanced medium chain substrate activity, polynucleotides encoding and configured to express the mutant thioesterases in a transformed host cell, host cells transformed to ...
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Brian Pfleger, Rung-Yi Lai, Nestor Hernandez Lozada | P180007US02

Technology

Electrochemical Reductive Amination of Furfural

5-Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) has been called the “sleeping giant” of building block chemistry and listed among the top 10 biomass-based platform chemicals by the U.S Department of Energy. Reduc...
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Kyoung-Shin Choi, John Roylance | P170001US01

Technology

High Yield Method to Produce HMF from Fructose

The platform molecule 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), produced from the dehydration of C6 sugars (hexoses), is considered to be one of the top value-added chemicals. The efficient production of HMF fro...
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James Dumesic, Ali Hussain Motagamwala | P180329US01

Technology

Enzymatic Depolymerization of Lignin

Lignin is a renewable resource that accounts for up to 30 percent of the dry weight of vascular plant cell walls. It is comprised of aromatic compounds that may be valuable commodities for the biofuel...
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Timothy Donohue, Daniel Gall, Wayne Kontur, Hoon Kim, John Ralph, Daniel Noguera, Brian Fox, Craig Bingman | P170274US02

Technology

Improved Biomass Conversion with GVL Co-Solvent

Production of fuels and chemicals from biomass requires utilization of all biomass fractions, i.e., cellulose, hemi-cellulose and lignin. Thus, product molecules from all fractions of biomass must be ...
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James Dumesic, Ali Hussain Motagamwala | P150223US01

Technology

Superabsorbent, Sustainable Aerogels

Aerogels are the world’s lightest solid materials made by removing liquid from gels. Such materials may contain up to 99 percent air and have special properties like high porosity and absorption. O...
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Shaoqin Gong, Zhiyong Cai, Qifeng Zheng | P140038US02

Technology

One- and Two-Phase Conversion of Biomass to Furfural

Exploiting the energy potential of biomass high in cellulose and lignin—including grasses, shrubs, husks, bark, yard and mill offal not readily digestible by humans—offers a vast and renew...
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James Dumesic, Elif Gurbuz, Stephanie Wettstein, David Martin Alonso | P120195US01

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