Investigation of deactivation mechanisms of a solid acid catalyst during esterification of the bio-oils from mallee biomass

Xun Hu, Caroline Lievens, Daniel Mourant, Yi Wang, Liping Wu, Richard Gunawan, Yao Song and Chun-Zhu Li

Applied Energy, 2013, vol. 111, issue C, 94-103

Abstract: This study reports the deactivation mechanisms of the solid acid catalyst Amberlyst 70 during the esterification of bio-oils from mallee biomass and the methods for catalyst regeneration. The metal ions in bio-oil deactivated Amberlyst 70 via ion exchange with the hydrogen ions on/in catalyst, which changed structure of catalysts and reduced availability of acidic sites. N-containing organics reacted with the hydrogen ions on/in catalyst, forming neutral salts and resulting in complete catalyst deactivation. Polymers formed during the esterification of bio-oils deposited on/in catalyst, reducing the accessibility of catalytic sites. Washing with solvents could remove some adsorbed organics and restore some catalytic activity but not much. In comparison, ion exchange in a concentrated sulfuric acid removes most of metal ions and the N-containing organics and significantly improves the catalytic activity.

Keywords: Bio-oil esterification; Metal ions; Ion exchange; Polymer; Catalyst deactivation and regeneration (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2013
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:appene:v:111:y:2013:i:c:p:94-103

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DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2013.04.078

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