Abstract:

Lignin is the second most abundant polymer in plants and it constitutes 30% of the nonfossil organic carbon source in nature. Lignin is also a group of by-products that are obtained in the paper industry when cellulose is separated showing a diversity of functional groups and a range of molecular weights depending on the pulping processes. Industrial lignins are a very affordable material that over the years have shown different applications in very different fields, with or without chemical modifications including its incorporation into different polymers to improve properties with respect to the original polymers. However, the most interesting application of lignin is its use as a renewable raw material for the preparation of low molecular weight aromatic compounds as an alternative for the petrochemical industry. The results at present are still very modest, because of the described processes produce complex mixtures with low yields of single aromatic compounds, so there is much work to be done in the coming years to develop effective methods for such purpose.

Keywords: Aromatic compounds from lignin; Biopolymer; Commercial lignins; Lignin applications; Lignin structure; Native lignin; Physical and chemical properties of lignin; Renewable material; Structural models; Valorization of lignin--