Catalytic Fast Pyrolysis for Biofuels and Sustainable Chemicals

A special issue of Catalysts (ISSN 2073-4344). This special issue belongs to the section "Biomass Catalysis".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 February 2022) | Viewed by 7205

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park, NSW 2109, Australia
Interests: renewable energy; biofuels; catalytic fast pyrolysis; heterogeneous catalysis; bio-oil upgrading; phytoremediation; bioelectrochemical cells; bioelectricity generation; wastewater treatment; waste to energy technologies; life cycle assessment; microplastic pollution
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Co-Guest Editor
Department of Plant Agriculture, University Of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada
Interests: Biofuel; Pyrolysis; Carbonization; Hydrothermal Liquefaction; Catalysts; Biochar; Water and Wastewater treatment using bio-adsorbent and Plunging Jet; Bio-composte Materials
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Macquarie University, Macquarie Park NSW, Australia
Interests: biomass pyrolysis; bio-oil/coal tar upgrading; air/heavy metal pollutions; iron ore processing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Increasing environmental concerns like greenhouse gas emissions, climate change, and depleting fossil fuels demand the production of ecofriendly energy fuels and sustainable chemicals. In this regard, fast pyrolysis is recognized as a promising approach to produce renewable energy fuels like bio-oil, biochar, and syngas from biomass or agricultural wastes as feedstocks. Moreover, catalytic fast pyrolysis (CFP) which includes the application of nanomaterials as potential catalysts can be applied to upgrade the yield and quality of the pyrolysis products. Especially, bio-oil upgrading into hydrocarbons and high-added-value products through CFP has attracted a great deal of attention, and consequently this technique has been successfully used to improve the calorific and physicochemical properties of the bio-oil and upgrade it into other sustainable chemicals. A variety of catalysts can be applied in different modes of CFP to enhance the bio-oil upgrading or the yield of particular chemicals.

Considering the significance of the topic, this Special Issue aims to cover the most recent progress and the advances in the field of catalytic fast pyrolysis for the production of biofuels and sustainable chemicals. This Special Issue includes, but is not limited to, the following topics: biomass pyrolysis; catalytic fast pyrolysis; pyrolysis for biofuel production; bio-oil upgrading; hydrocarbon production; application of acidic and basic catalysts for sustainable chemicals; waste to energy technology; and the thermochemical conversion of biomass into energy fuels.

Dr. Ravinder Kumar
Dr. Ranjeet Kumar Mishra
Dr. Tao Kan
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • catalytic fast pyrolysis
  • renewable fuels
  • bio-oil upgrading
  • sustainable chemicals
  • waste to energy technology

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 2597 KiB  
Article
Thermochemical Conversion of Untreated and Pretreated Biomass for Efficient Production of Levoglucosenone and 5-Chloromethylfurfural in the Presence of an Acid Catalyst
by Chandan Kundu, Saheli Biswas, Mahmud Arman Kibria and Sankar Bhattacharya
Catalysts 2022, 12(2), 206; https://doi.org/10.3390/catal12020206 - 9 Feb 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2936
Abstract
Levoglucosenone (LGO) and 5-chloromethyl furfural (5-CMF) are two bio-based platform chemicals with applications in medicines, green solvents, fuels, and the polymer industry. This study demonstrates the one-step thermochemical conversion of raw and pretreated (delignified) biomass to highly-valuable two platform chemicals in a fluidized [...] Read more.
Levoglucosenone (LGO) and 5-chloromethyl furfural (5-CMF) are two bio-based platform chemicals with applications in medicines, green solvents, fuels, and the polymer industry. This study demonstrates the one-step thermochemical conversion of raw and pretreated (delignified) biomass to highly-valuable two platform chemicals in a fluidized bed reactor. Hydrochloric acid gas is utilized to convert biomass thermochemically. The addition of hydrochloric acid gas facilitates the formation of LGO and CMF. Acid gas reacts with biomass to form 5-CMF, which acts as a catalyst to increase the concentration of LGO in the resulting bio-oil. The presence of higher cellulose content in delignified biomass significantly boosts the synthesis of both platform chemicals (LGO and CMF). GC-MS analysis was used to determine the chemical composition of bio-oil produced from thermal and thermochemical conversion of biomass. At 350 °C, the maximum concentration of LGO (27.70 mg/mL of bio-oil) was achieved, whereas at 400 °C, the highest concentration of CMF (19.24 mg/mL of bio-oil) was obtained from hardwood-delignified biomass. The findings suggest that 350 °C is the optimal temperature for producing LGO and 400 °C is optimal for producing CMF from delignified biomass. The secondary cracking process is accelerated by temperatures over 400 °C, resulting in a low concentration of the target platform chemicals. This work reveals the simultaneous generation of LGO and CMF, two high-value commercially relevant biobased compounds. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Catalytic Fast Pyrolysis for Biofuels and Sustainable Chemicals)
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23 pages, 8364 KiB  
Article
Catalytic Pyrolysis of Lignin Model Compound (Ferulic Acid) over Alumina: Surface Complexes, Kinetics, and Mechanisms
by Tetiana Kulik, Nataliia Nastasiienko, Borys Palianytsia, Mykola Ilchenko and Mats Larsson
Catalysts 2021, 11(12), 1508; https://doi.org/10.3390/catal11121508 - 10 Dec 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3172
Abstract
Studies of the thermochemical properties of the important model compound of lignin-ferulic acid (FA) and its surface complexes are substantial for developing technologies for catalytic pyrolysis of renewable biomass into biofuels and lignin-derived chemicals as well as for bio-oil upgrading. In this work, [...] Read more.
Studies of the thermochemical properties of the important model compound of lignin-ferulic acid (FA) and its surface complexes are substantial for developing technologies for catalytic pyrolysis of renewable biomass into biofuels and lignin-derived chemicals as well as for bio-oil upgrading. In this work, the catalytic pyrolysis of ferulic acid over alumina was studied by temperature-programmed desorption mass spectrometry (TPD MS), in situ FT-IR spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and DFT calculations. We established that both the carboxyl group and the active groups (HO and CH3O) of the aromatic ring interact with the alumina surface. We calculated the kinetic parameters of formation of the main products of catalytic pyrolysis: 4-vinylguaiacol, guaiacol, hydroxybenzene, benzene, toluene, cresol, naphthalene, and PACs. Possible methods of their forming from the related surface complexes of FA are suggested. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Catalytic Fast Pyrolysis for Biofuels and Sustainable Chemicals)
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