Ezinne Achinivu Heading link
PhD, Lab Director
929 W. Taylor St.,
174 EIB,
MC 110,
Chicago,
Illinois
60607
Phone: (312) 996-3469
Email: achinivu@uic.edu
Outlook for the "Achinivu" Lab Heading link
- Isolate: Extraction, purification, recovery and characterization of compounds of significance and value from waste biomass (biopolymers and bioactives)
- Apply: Application development (chemical functionalization/derivatization, material formation and product formulations)
- Produce: Process development (life cycle analyses, techno-economic analyses and process modeling/scale up and process automation/machine learning)
Research Thrusts (IAP): Isolate Heading link
| Motivation | Challenge | Approach | Aims |
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• There has not been commercially viable biomass processing technique
• Limitation on industrial adoption |
• Poor understanding of biomass composition and structure
• Industry treats biomass like synthetic chemicals |
• Study molecular level structure interactions and
• Design tailored solvents for effectiveness, selectivity, cost and recyclability |
1. Biomass 3D modeling and compositional analyses
2. Computational, analytical and statistical modeling of lignin extraction 3. Deep dive into mechanistic studies |
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Research Thrusts (IAP): Apply Heading link
| Motivation | Challenge | Approach | Aim |
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• Lignin applications have not been fully addressed
• Lignin has unique properties that are of interest to industrial application |
• Heterogeneity of native lignin
• Scientific community does not fully know what lignin is • No high-quality lignin stream* |
• Develop novel material based on lignin
• Incorporate with biomass components (cellulose, proteins, phenolic acid) |
1. Complete characterization of the biomass fractions
• Develop composite (lignin with cellulose) 2. Demonstrate different material architectures 3. Characterize performance in specific applications |
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Research Thrusts (IAP): Produce Heading link
| Motivation | Challenge | Approach | Aim |
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• There has not been commercially viable biomass processing technique
• Limitation on industrial adoption |
• No process development
• No process modeling • Process economics • Sustainability (TEA/LCA) • Pilot and scale up |
• Apply green chemistry and engineering principles
• Sustainable energy – triple bottom line • Reaction engineering |
1. Process optimization (DOE)
2. Process modeling • Economics • Life cycle • Applications 3. Scale up and reactor design |
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