In-situ synthesis of NiMo@SAPO-11 under mild conditions for the hydrodeoxygenation of triolein

Abstract

Economical and sulphur-free Ni catalysts are attractive alternatives to hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) of fats and oils for the production of diesel-range paraffins, but are prone to decarbonylation/decarboxylation (DCO_x) reactions. Metal oxide decorated nickel catalysts exhibit remarkably high catalytic activity, which can modify the nickel catalyzed deoxygenation reaction pathway. Herein, a series of NiMo@SAPO-11 catalysts with different Ni/Mo mass ratio were prepared using an in-situ synthesis under mild conditions (100 °C, 12 h). The as-synthesized bimetallic NiMo nanocatalyst with a Ni/Mo mass ratio of 3:1 showed an excellent catalytic HDO activity with 100 % conversion of triolein and 86.5 % selectivity of octadecane. Combined with experimental results and density functional calculations, it was demonstrated that oxygen vacancies derived from MoO_x considerably favored the adsorption and activation of substrates. An efficient selective HDO process for fats and oils has been achieved by direct deoxygenation of hydroxyl/carbonyl functional groups.