Monoterpenoids are important renewable materials that can be used for the synthesis of both fine and bulk chemicals. Turpentines are the most abundant source of terpenes and in particular Crude Sulfate Turpentines (CST), by-produced in a Kraft mill in 5�10 kg/t pulp amount, are mainly constituted by pinene, carene and limonene. To convert these terpenic mixtures into p-cymene could represent an interesting way towards the valorisation of such an important secondary raw material. Thus p-cymene can be used as a solvent or additive in fragrances and musk synthesis, but also as intermediate in the production of p-cresol, currently produced via toluene alkylation with propylene, and of terephtalic acid. We explored the possibility of using copper supported catalysts for the transformation of turpentines into p-cymene via isomerisation and dehydrogenation. Thus, the effectiveness of copper based catalysts and mixed oxides has already been exploited in the selective transformation of different terpenic substrates. It is interesting to note that other terpenic mixtures can be recovered from citrus fruit wastes coming from industrial juice production (around half a million tons in Italy). In these cases the mixture is mainly constituted by limonene and therefore it is even simpler to directly convert the wastes into p-cymene via dehydrogenation.

Solid catalysts for terpenes valorisation

245th National Meeting (2013)

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