Biofuels via hydrogenolysis-condensation
View Patent ↗A method comprises providing a carbohydrate; reacting the carbohydrate with hydrogen in the presence of a hydrogenolysis catalyst to produce reaction products comprising an alcohol, a polyol, and a higher polyol; recycling the higher polyol through the hydrogenolysis reaction to produce reaction products comprising an alcohol and a polyol and a higher polyol; processing at least a portion of the reaction products to form a fuel blend.
1. A method comprising:
providing a carbohydrate to a reaction vessel by treating a biomass feedstock comprising lignin in said reaction vessel to form the carbohydrate via a hydrolysis reaction;
in said reaction vessel, after the carbohydrate is formed, reacting the carbohydrate with hydrogen in the presence of a hydrogenolysis catalyst in a hydrogenolysis reaction to produce reaction products comprising an alcohol, a polyol, and a higher polyol with an oxygen to carbon ratio of 0.5 or more, wherein the hydrolysis reaction and the hydrogenolysis reaction are conducted in a single step;
recycling the higher polyol through the hydrogenolysis reaction to produce said reaction products;
processing at least a portion of the reaction products to form a fuel blend.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein the carbohydrate is reacted directly with hydrogen in the presence of a hydrogenation catalyst prior to hydrogenolysis.
3. The method of claim 2 wherein the hydrogenolysis catalyst and hydrogenation catalyst are the same catalyst.
4. The method of claim 2 wherein the hydrogenolysis catalyst and the hydrogenation catalyst are present in the same reaction vessel.
5. The method of claim 1 wherein the processing of at least a portion of the reaction product comprises contacting at least a portion of the reaction product with a hydrogenation catalyst.
6. The method of claim 1 wherein the processing of at least a portion of the reaction product comprises contacting at least a portion of the reaction product with an acid catalyst to form at least some olefins; and contacting the olefins with an oligomerization catalyst.
7. The method of claim 1 wherein the hydrogenolysis catalyst comprises at least one metal selected from the group consisting of: Cr, Mo, W, Re, Mn, Cu, Cd, Fe, Co, Ni, Pt, Pd, Rh, Ru, Ir, Os, an alloy thereof, and any combination thereof.
8. The method of claim 1 wherein treating the biomass feedstock comprising lignin comprises hydrolyzing of at least a portion of the biomass feedstock with a hydrolysis reaction.
9. The method of claim 8 wherein the hydrolysis of at least a portion of the biomass feedstock comprises contacting at least a portion of the biomass feedstock with a hydrolysis catalyst.
10. The method of claim 9 wherein the hydrolysis catalyst comprises at least one of: an acid catalyst, a base catalyst, a metal catalyst, and any combination thereof.