Hydrodeoxygenation of Anisole by Using a Ruthenium‐Containing Nickel‐Iron Hydrotalcite‐Based Catalyst

Abstract

Ruthenium-loaded nickel-iron (NiÀ Fe) hydrotalcite materials were synthesized via the co-precipitation method. The physicochemical properties of the synthesized materials were characterized by spectroscopic and analytical methods. The highly crystalline nature of NiÀ Fe HT (NiFe-0.5) hydrotalcite material was evident from powder XRD studies. The presence of uniformly dispersed ruthenium in its NiRu alloy form was evident from the TPR studies. The synthesized materials show promising catalytic performance for the hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) of anisole under ambient reaction conditions (190 °C, 20 bar H 2 ). The catalyst prepared with a nickel-to-iron molar ratio of 2 : 1 (NF0.5 A) exhibited a good hydrotalcite structure and moderate catalytic activity for the hydrotreatment of anisole. The catalytic activity was improved by the introduction of 4 wt. % ruthenium on the surface of NiÀ Fe hydrotalcite (NF0.5Ru), which shows 98 % anisole conversion with the selective formation of toluene as the major product. Catalytic activity remained for several consecutive runs. The recycled catalyst showed a similar conversion with the formation of toluene and methylcyclohexane as the major products. The variation in the selectivity might be due to the re-dispersion of NiÀ Ru active sites.

Hydrotalcites as Versatile Functional Materials for Renewable Feedstock Upgrading to Value-added Chemicals

“…CO 2 upgrading to methanol is another catalytic pathway for which several types of hydrotalcites, such as Pd-Zn-Al hydrotalcite supported on mesoporous silica (MCM-48), Cu-based hydrotalcite and Cu-Zn-Al/Zr containing hydrotalcite-like material have been used [95][96][97][98] . In this context, Zr has shown promoting effects on Cu interaction and its dispersion on the surface of hydrotalcite.…”