Techno-Economic and Environmental Advances in Converting Lignocellulose to Naphtha for Renewable Fuels and Polymers

The growing need to replace fossil carbon in fuels and chemicals calls for scalable biomass valorization routes that combine economic viability with climate benefits. This study presents a novel lignocellulose-to-naphtha process that enables direct conversion of discarded carbohydrate-rich feedstocks into naphtha-like platform molecules, suitable for use in gasoline and polymers. The process relies on deep catalytic hydrodeoxygenation in a biphasic medium, employing acid and metal catalysts. Compared to earlier studies, key innovations include a continuous-flow reactor design with suspended carbohydrate inflow and vapor-phase naphtha outflow, higher operating temperatures, and the use of low-cost industrial waste streams. These optimizations result in a 55% lower minimum selling price (1.04 €/kg) and a 95% reduction in climate change impact (0.35 kg CO2-eq/kg) compared to the initial benchmark. Techno-economic and life cycle assessments confirm that the process not only competes with existing biobased naphtha routes, but also outperforms fossil naphtha in key sustainability indicators. By integrating biogenic carbon into short- and long-lived hydrocarbon products, this platform provides a versatile and scalable route toward carbon-neutral or even carbon-negative fuels and chemicals.