Green Chemistry from Waste – Smart, Sustainable, Impactful
- Beschreibung
Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) is a versatile chemical compound with promising applications in biofuels, polymers, and other industrial chemicals. However, the sustainability of its production depends heavily on the type of feedstock used and the processes employed. Potato processing residues (pomace) offer an attractive lignocellulosic feedstock for HMF production through acid-catalyzed hydrolysis. The main aim of this project is to maximize glucose concentration by hydrolysis process and determine the optimal reaction conditions such as acid concentration, temperature, and reaction time that achieve high yields while minimizing energy use and byproducts. Standard laboratory autoclaves enable efficient dehydration to HMF, and the experimental results will provide essential input for assessing the environmental performance of the process through life-cycle analysis, ensuring sustainable chemical production and resource efficiency.
- Beschreibung des interdisziplinären Teils des Projekts
- The project can be carried out by one student or two, depending on the scope. One approach is for a single person to handle both the experimental process and the environmental assessment, integrating lab results directly into sustainability analysis. Alternatively, two students can work with complementary roles: one focusing on experimental data generation and the other on sustainability assessment and system analysis, ensuring close coordination between both aspects. The experimental results serve as input for the environmental assessment ensuring strong integration between both disciplines.
- Projektzeitraum
- Sommersemester 2026
- Bewerbungszeitraum
- 07. bis 20.04.2026
- Durchführung
- semesterbegleitend
- Details zu Projektzeitraum und Durchführung
The project schedule will be arranged to accommodate the student’s availability.
Implementation Plan:
- Experimental work – Optimize acid catalyzed hydrolysis of potato pomace (acid concentration, temperature, time) to maximize glucose and HMF yield and minimize byproducts and energy use.
- Environmental assessment – Use experimental data as input for life‑cycle analysis (LCA) to evaluate environmental impacts (climate change, acidification, energy, material resources, etc.) of HMF production from pomace.
- Integration and Analysis – Comparing results, interpreting trade-offs, and identifying improvements.
- Reporting – Preparing final documentation, presenting findings.
- Studienfach
- offen für alle Studienfächer
- Betreuende
- Kanakasree Shivaprasad, Prof. Dr. Andrea Kruse
- Institut
- Institut für Agrartechnik (440) ( (Conversion Technologies of Biobased Resources))
- Sprache
- deutsch/englisch
- Teilnehmendenanzahl
- min. 1, max. 2
- Arbeitsaufwand
-
ca. 180 Stunden pro Teilnehmende:r
| 6
ECTS-Punkte
Arbeitsaufwand (Stunden und ggf. ECTS) sind ungefähre Angaben. Die tatsächlich vergebenen ECTS-Punkte ergeben sich aus der tatsächlich geleisteten Arbeit.
- Für dieses Projekt ist kein Motivationsschreiben des Studierenden erforderlich
- Projektart
- experimentell
- Lernziele
-
Die Teilnehmende lernen in diesem Projekt:
- Scientific literature research
- Laboratory experience for biomass pretreatment.
- Gain knowledge of life-cycle assessment (LCA) to evaluate the environmental performance of chemical processes.
- Structure and present their results in a poster/presentation
- Anmerkungen für Studierende
Students may submit the report, abstract, and presentation in German, while all communication with the supervisor will take place in English.
For further questions regarding the project, contact me via email:
kanakasree.shivaprasad@uni-hohenheim.de
- Schlagworte
- platform chemicals, LCA, laboratory work