A non-syn-gas catalytic route to methanol production

Abstract

methanol is an important platform molecule for chemical synthesis and its high energy density also renders it a good candidate as a cleaner transportation fuel. At present, methanol is manufactured from natural gas via the indirect syn-gas route. Here we show that ethylene glycol, a versatile chemical derived from biomass or fossil fuels, can be directly converted to methanol in hydrogen with high selectivity over a Pd/Fe 2 o 3 co-precipitated catalyst. This opens up a possibility for diversification in natural resources for energy-starved countries. The working catalyst contains extremely small 'PdFe' clusters and metal adatoms on defective iron oxide to give the required metal-support interaction for the novel synthesis.

Upgrading Lignocellulosic Biomasses: Hydrogenolysis of Platform Derived Molecules Promoted by Heterogeneous Pd-Fe Catalysts

“…As highlighted by Tsang and co-workers [131], it is very important to control pre-reduction treatments, in terms of temperature and duration, because they affect the induction time. Recently, considering the peculiar features of magnetite particles related to their lower sensitivity to oxidation, strong ferromagnetic behavior and easy recovery (aided by an external magnetic field) and reuse, the preparation of Pd/Fe 3 O 4 catalyst in nanometric scale of different property and composition attracted a lot of interest [196].…”

“…After 24 h of reaction, no structural modification of the Fe3O4 support was monitored, while the presence of the diffraction peak relative to the (111) plane of the palladium is indicative of Pd particles agglomeration [128]. TEM and HAADF-STEM of co-precipitated Pd/Fe catalysts allowed to measure the average size of the palladium particles, ranging between 0.5 and 1.5 nm, as depicted in Figure 4 [131].…”

“…STEM-EDX measurements show also the presence of aggregated iron particles on samples having a high Fe/Pd ratio and formation of a Pd-Fe phase (the remaining part of iron is in the metallic form). XRD patterns of all the catalysts show, together with the characteristic peak of graphitic carbon (2θ = 23.5°) [ TEM and HAADF-STEM of co-precipitated Pd/Fe catalysts allowed to measure the average size of the palladium particles, ranging between 0.5 and 1.5 nm, as depicted in Figure 4 [131].…”

“…In general, supported Pd-Fe catalysts with a strong metal-metal and/or metal-support interaction can be prepared through the co-precipitation technique [131][132][133][134][135][136][137][138][139]. As highlighted by Tsang and co-workers [131], it is very important to control pre-reduction treatments, in terms of temperature and duration, because they affect the induction time.…”

“…Specifically, results obtained in important "green and sustainable" reactions will be presented including: aqueous-phase reforming [128][129][130], hydrogenolysis [131][132][133][134][135][136] and CTH [137,138] of C6-C2 polyols, hydrogenolysis and transfer hydrogenolysis of furfural [139,140], hydrodeoxygenation of phenol derivatives [141,142], HDO and CTH of aromatic ethers [143][144][145]. All these reactions will be discussed in details with the aim to show the unicity of heterogeneous Pd-Fe catalysts that are suitable for a wide reductive valorization processes of all constituent components of lignocellulosic biomasses having the potential to be successfully used in modern biorefineries to produce simple bulk compounds.…”