Prof. Jason Lam’s team invented a methodology to synthesize a valuable chemical, gamma-butyrolactone (GBL), using a feedstock derived from biomass yard waste, furoic acid. The work is published in Nature Communications, titled “One-pot redox cascade paired electrosynthesis of gamma-butyrolactone from furoic acid”. GBL is a non-toxic solvent and a chemical applicable in various industries, including the spice, pharmaceutical, and perfume industries.

The traditional thermocatalysis method requires multiple steps operating at high pressure and high temperature using gaseous or toxic reagents. Prof. Lam’s new electrocatalytic method allows the synthesis to be completed in a single pot at atmospheric pressure and below water-boiling temperature in water. Most importantly, the electrode and condition selection are designed strategically to avoid using costly auxiliary chemicals. The reaction is scalable, as 2.1?g of 98.1% pure gamma-butyrolactone is isolated through a simple solvent extraction.