Biomass is as a sustainable and renewable carbon source to generate chemicals. Ethanol is routinely derived from plant biomass via fermentation and is inexpensive and widely available but is mostly utilized as a liquid hydrocarbon fuel supplement. Thus there is a need to monetize ethanol by transforming it into higher hydrocarbons via bottoms up approach. Many chemicals have so far been synthesized from ethanol via catalytic treatment (1,3-butadiene, athyl acetate, ethylene oxide, n-butanol) but the yields are low as the overall process involves many fundamental reactive steps and C-C coupling requiring bifunctional catalysts. In this presentation we will discuss molecular level details of MgO/SiO2 catalyst structure for 1,3-butadiene synthesis from bioethanol and its corresponding activity relationships. In particular, we identified the overall reaction mechanisms of ethanol on MgO/SiO2 surface by combining both theoretical and experimental study by means of DFT, in-situ FTIR, and fixed bed reactor. A complex mechanism involving acetaldehyde, crotyl species as well as alternative pathway via ethylene intermediate are highlighted.

Catalytic conversion of bioethanol to 1,3-butadiene using bifunctional catalysts: The role of active sites via in situ spectroscopy

254th National Meeting (2017)

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