Catalytic cracking of bio-oils improved by the formation of mesopores by means of Y zeolite desilication.

JUAN RAFAEL GARCÍA; MELISA BERTERO; MARISA FALCO; ULISES SEDRAN

APPLIED CATALYSIS A-GENERAL

ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV

Lugar: Amsterdam; Año: 2015 vol. 503 p. 1 - 8

0926-860X

tY zeolite was desilicated by means of alkaline treatments (NaOH 0.05, 0.10 and 0.20 M) during 15 min toproduce varying mesoporosity over it. Catalysts were made with a SiO2matrix and a binder. Pine sawdustbio-oil was produced by pyrolysis and immediately upgraded, without intermediate condensation, ona downstream bed of the compound catalysts. The experiments were produced in a fixed bed reactorat 550◦C using different catalyst to reactants relationships. The desilicated zeolites were more effectivethan the parent zeolite to deoxygenate bio-oil and produce more hydrocarbons, with higher selectivityto olefins (more than 35 wt.%) and lower selectivity to aromatics (less than 60 wt.%) in gasoline. Theselectivity to C4−and gasoline olefins increased if the mesoporosity was higher, and the coke formed wasless condensed. These observations were the result of improvements in the diffusion of bulky moleculesin bio-oils, such as phenolic ethers, increasing their conversion to hydrocarbons.