In recent years, research efforts to reduce dependence on fossil based resources have increased significantly. In that regard glycerol, a by-product of biodiesel, has been used extensively to produce chemical commodities such as propylene glycol and lactic acid via heterogeneous catalytic processes.Heterogeneous hydrogenation and hydrogenolysis reaction are energy demanding due to high temperatures and reaction times. One alternative that has been explored in that last decade has been microwave irradiation. It has been reported that in systems that contain metal species, reaction times have been reduced significantly without lowering the yield/selectivity of corresponding conventional reactionsWe have investigated the use of glycerol in microwave assisted hydrogenolysis and transfer hydrogenation reactions in presence of metal catalysts such as Ru/C, Ni/Al, and Ru sponge. The results will be compared to conventional processes with respect to several factors: temperature, pressure, reaction time, and catalyst in terms of yield and selectivity.

Microwave assisted conversion of  glycerol in heterogeneous processes

243rd National Meeting (2012)

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