Production of high-value chemicals by oxidative depolymerization of larch lignin using cerium-modified Anderson-type polyoxometalates

Ningxin Wei; Tingting Zhou; Chang Liu; Wenbiao Xu; Shujun Li; Junyou Shi

doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.145956

Production of high-value chemicals by oxidative depolymerization of larch lignin using cerium-modified Anderson-type polyoxometalates

Int J Biol Macromol. 2025 Jul 11:145956. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.145956. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Ningxin Wei¹, Tingting Zhou², Chang Liu³, Wenbiao Xu², Shujun Li⁴, Junyou Shi⁵

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Bio-based Material Science & Technology (Northeast Forestry University), Ministry of Education, Harbin 150040, China.
² Key Laboratory of Biomass Materials Science and Technology of Jilin Province, Beihua University, Binjiang East Road, Jilin City, Jilin Province, China.
³ School of Agricultural Engineering and Food Science, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo 255000, China.
⁴ Key Laboratory of Bio-based Material Science & Technology (Northeast Forestry University), Ministry of Education, Harbin 150040, China. Electronic address: lishujun@nefu.edu.cn.
⁵ Key Laboratory of Biomass Materials Science and Technology of Jilin Province, Beihua University, Binjiang East Road, Jilin City, Jilin Province, China; School of Agricultural Engineering and Food Science, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo 255000, China. Electronic address: bhsjy64@163.com.

PMID: 40653220
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.145956

Abstract

The high-value-added phenolic compounds generated by the oxidative depolymerization of lignin are an essential way to substitute fossil resources and achieve high-value utilization of agroforestry wastes. However, the process of lignin oxidation and depolymerization to produce phenolic compounds always faces the challenge of low catalytic activity of catalysts and difficulty in recycling. Therefore, we incorporated cerium into the Anderson-type polyoxometalate framework to prepare a rod-shaped Ce₃[CoMo₆] catalyst. Under optimal conditions (150 °C, 1.0 MPa O₂, 4 h, 0.1 g Ce₃[CoMo₆]), the yield reaches 14.75 wt% and has good cycling stability. The excellent catalytic performance is attributed to the incorporation of cerium, which enhances the catalyst's specific surface area and active sites, facilitating full contact with lignin, improving the redox ability of Mo⁵⁺ and Ce⁴⁺ active centers, and accelerating the cleavage of CO and CC bonds in lignin. This work lays the foundation for the design of efficient catalysts and high-value utilization of agroforestry wastes.

Keywords: Aromatic chemicals; Cerium-modified Anderson-type polyoxometalate; Larch lignin; Oxidative depolymerization.