Mild hydrogenolysis of lignin model compound and organosolv lignin over non-noble bimetallic Ni–Fe/TiN catalyst

DOI: 10.1016/j.biombioe.2023.106821

Authors: Tang Son Nguyen (Phenikaa University) , Manh Tu Le (Phenikaa University) , Van Hieu Nguyen (Phenikaa University)
Co-authored by industrial partner: No

Type: Journal Paper
Journal: Biomass And Bioenergy , VOL 174

State: Published (Approved)
Published: July 2023
Diamond Proposal Number(s): 15151

Abstract: Lignin is one of the most promising feedstocks for renewable aromatics production. Conversion of such feedstock into aromatics can be attained through catalytic hydrogenolysis. In this work, NixFey/TiN bimetallic catalysts were evaluated in the hydrogenolysis of both: (i) benzyl phenyl ether (BPE) as a model compound for lignin and (ii) real organosolv lignin feedstock under low temperature (150 °C) and low H2 pressure (12 bar). All bimetallic catalysts exhibited superior performance over single-component materials and were shown to compose of uniformly/highly dispersed and intimately mixed Ni and Fe nanoparticles. Among bimetallic materials, Ni5Fe2/TiN possesses the highest activity in BPE hydrogenolysis, which is comparable to that of a 5% Pd/C commercial catalyst while showing significantly higher aromatic selectivity. Ni5Fe2/TiN catalyst also outperformed Pd/C in hydrogenolysis of organosolv lignin, shown by its higher oil yield, greater content of phenolic monomers, and lower content of dimers. This material exhibited good stability in BPE conversion with no noticeable deactivation over 5 recycling cycles. XANES analysis suggests the electron transfer from Ni to Fe, which explains the superior activity observed with Ni5Fe2/TiN.

Subject Areas: Chemistry, Materials, Environment


Instruments: B18-Core EXAFS

Added On: 10/05/2023 10:48

Discipline Tags:

Earth Sciences & Environment Climate Change Physical Chemistry Catalysis Chemistry Materials Science Organic Chemistry Life Sciences & Biotech

Technical Tags:

Spectroscopy X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS) Extended X-ray Absorption Fine Structure (EXAFS)