Synthesis and Investigation of Alternative Solvents for Dissolution and Analysis of Biomass by NMRPečovnik Wutt, Naja (Avtor) Jereb, Marjan (Mentor) Petrovski, Željko (Komentor) Eutectic solventGuanidinium thiocyanateUreaCellulose and Hemicellulose dissolutionNMR spectroscopyBiomass, derived from plants, consists primarily of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. These building blocks of plant and algae cell walls have the potential to be used if separated into individual components. The applications could include the production of value-added chemicals and materials. Finding efficient solvent systems that are at the same time environmentally friendly and easily available could maximize the utility of biomass in diverse industrial and research contexts. This research explores alternative solvents for dissolving biomass, focusing on eutectic solvents such as guanidinium salts: urea (1:2) in combination with other suitable compounds to enable detailed NMR analysis. The guanidinium thiocyanate-urea eutectic mixture was synthesized and confirmed through ATR-FTIR analysis, which validated the presence of intermolecular interactions. Although it was not effective for dissolving cellulose on its own, its combination with DMSO and guanidine enhanced solubilization. A 1H NMR analysis of D-glucose revealed that the solvent system was suitable for small carbohydrates. However, cellulose samples generated low-resolution spectra. In contrast, glucomannan (a type of hemicellulose) dissolved more efficiently, particularly in eutectic mixtures with DMSO-d6 or deuterium oxide, which produced higher quality NMR spectra. While the initial efforts to dissolve cellulose were unsuccessful, the focus shifted to hemicellulose dissolution, demonstrating that various solvent systems could effectively aid in this process.20252025-07-02 15:15:04Diplomsko delo/naloga170201VisID: 23071COBISS_ID: 243806723sl