(64d) Hydrodeoxygenation of 2-Methoxy-4-Propylphenol in a Microreactor

Biomass, a renewable source, can be converted to transportation fuel via a number of thermochemical approaches, one of which is fast pyrolysis. Pyrolysis oil (PO) derived from fast pyrolysis of lignocellulosic biomass contains about 40-50 percent oxygen including the oxygen in water. Removal of oxygen from pyrolysis oil and molecular weight reduction are paramount for increasing its heating value, thermal stability, volatility, and miscibility with crude oil. The goal of our current study is to hydrodeoxygenate pyrolysis oil to produce a mixture of hydrocarbons and water. However, the presence of more than 300 oxygenates complicates this reaction and provides little understanding of reaction networks and kinetics which are expected to be of value in process design and modeling. In this regard, use of model compounds will enable better understanding of the oxygen removal reaction and kinetics.

This study investigates the catalytic hydrodeoxygenation of 2-Methoxy-4-Propylphenol (4-Propylguaiacol (4PG)) in removing oxygen to produce aromatic compounds and other hydrocarbons. This reaction is performed in a packed bed microreactor to take advantage of improved heat and mass transfer characteristics.

The effects of various processing conditions such as temperature, hydrogen partial pressure, reactor diameter, and residence time on conversion, yield, hydrogen consumption, and space-time-yield are investigated using presulfided Ni-Mo/Al₂O₃ catalyst. External and internal mass transfer resistances as well as heat transfer resistance are evaluated, and an intrinsic kinetic data on the hydrodeoxygenation of 4PG is subsequently analyzed to synthesize the rate law.