Integration of Deep Eutectic Solvents and Hydrotalcites for Biomass Conversion and Aldol Condensation: Toward Platform Chemicals and Jet Fuel Synthesis—A Review

The abundance and renewability of lignocellulosic biomass have made it a suitable alternative to fossil fuels in the reduction of global warming. The complex nature of the cellulose–hemicellulose–lignin bonds in the biomass makes it difficult to directly obtain platform chemicals. Pretreatment of the biomass has become a solution to remove lignin and obtain cellulose and or hemicellulose to produce platform chemicals. Platform chemicals such as hydroxymethylfurfural, furfural, and levulinic acid are viable feedstocks for aldol condensation to produce C8–C15 fuels. This review reports on deep eutectic solvents and microwave‐assisted pretreatment as green techniques for the delignification and platform chemicals production. Emphasis is placed on the use of hydrotalcites (HTs) as catalysts in platform chemicals production and aldol condensation for C8–C15 alkane fuels. Additionally, the hydrogenation of furfural into cyclopentanone and successive conversion into C10 and C15 alkanes with HTs was reviewed. This review examines the sequential treatment of lignocellulosic biomass for platform chemical production and higher chain alkane conversion. It focuses on emerging green pretreatment techniques for biomass fractionation, exploring their potential in platform chemical production. The use of hydrotalcites as catalysts for both platform chemical production and aldol condensation to produce higher alkanes, particularly for jet fuel, is also discussed.