Lignocellulosic biomass is an abundant and renewable material with potential to reduce our fossil fuel dependence for fuels and chemicals production.1 Lignin, a major component of lignocellulosic biomass, is a highly aromatic and oxygenated biopolymer that could supply our needs for aromatic chemicals. The catalytic depolymerization and deoxygenation of this aromatic feedstock, however, requires highly selective catalysts capable of cleaving C-O bonds located throughout its ill-defined structure. A selective catalyst capable of performing these reactions can greatly impact the economics of this process by minimizing the amount of hydrogen needed. Many catalysts have been reported for these reactions including transition metal oxides, phosphides, carbides, and noble metal catalysts.1 Our group has synthesized bimetallic Fe/Mo phosphide catalysts that are able to cleave the phenolic C-O bonds with minimal aromatic ring saturation occurring.2 This presentation will discuss the detailed characterization of bimetallic (Fe1-xMox)2P catalysts (x = 0.25 � 0.56) as hydrodeoxygenation catalysts. The synthesis of (Fe1-xMox)2P initially occurs through H2 reduction of a powder mixture containing FePO4 and MoO3. The effects of reduction temperature on the catalytic materials were probed with XRD, NH3 temperature programmed desorption (TPD), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and model compound hydrodeoxygenation experiments.3 Interestingly from XPS analyses, we observed Mo migration to the surface of the material at reduction temperatures > 750 oC coupled with a reduction in both total acidity and selectivity to C-O bond cleavage of phenol.3This presentation will focus on the synthesis and characterization of these interesting and selective catalysts for the production of fuels and chemicals derived from biomass.1. Hicks, J. C. J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 2011, 2, 2280-2287.2. Rensel, D. J.; Rouvimov, S.; Gin, M. E.; Hicks, J. C. J. Catal. 2013, 305, 256-263.3. Rensel, D. J.; Abbott, M.S.; Rouvimov, S.; Hicks, J. C. manuscript in preparation.

Parameters influencing hydrodeoxygenation selectivities in (Fe1-xMox)2P catalysts

248th National Meeting (2014)

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