Biomass conversion process to hydrocarbons

1. A process for the production of a higher hydrocarbon from solid biomass, said process comprising:

a. providing a biomass solid containing cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin;

b. digesting and hydrodeoxygenating the biomass solid in a liquid digestive solvent, said liquid digestive solvent containing a solvent mixture having a boiling point of at least 40° C., in the presence of a hydrothermal hydrocatalytic catalyst and hydrogen at a temperature in a range of from 110° C. to less than 300° C. and at a pressure in a range of from 20 bar to 200 bar to form a stable oxygenated hydrocarbon intermediate product having a viscosity of less than 100 centipoise (at 50° C.), a diol content of at least 2 wt %, less than 2 wt % of sugar, and less than 2 wt % acid (based on acetic acid equivalent), based on the stable oxygenated hydrocarbon intermediate product, and at least 60% of carbon in the stable oxygenated hydrocarbon intermediate product exists in molecules having 9 carbon atoms or less;

c. reacting at least a portion of the stable oxygenated hydrocarbon intermediate product with an acidic amorphous silica alumina catalyst at a temperature in a range from 300° C. to 400° C. to convert diol in the stable oxygenated hydrocarbon intermediate product into monooxygenates compounds thereby producing monooxygenated stream containing water and monooxygenates having a boiling point of at least 40° C.;

d. condensing the monooxygenated stream thereby producing an aqueous phase and an organic liquid phase;

e. removing at least a portion of the aqueous phase from the organic liquid phase to provide a condensed organic stream containing the monooxygenates; and

f. contacting monooxygenates having boiling point of at least 40° C. in the condensed organic stream with a strong acidic solid at a temperature in a range from 300° C. to about 350° C. and a pressure in a range from 500 to 1200 psi thereby producing a higher hydrocarbons stream containing unsaturated hydrocarbons including olefins and dienes.

2. The process of claim 1 wherein a fraction of diol converted in the step c is at least 25%.

3. The process of claim 2 wherein the fraction of diol converted in the step c is at least 50%.

4. The process of claim 3 wherein the fraction of diol converted in the step c is at least 75%.

5. The process of claim 1 wherein the step b is carried out at a temperature in a range of 150° C. to 30° C.

6. The process of claim 1 wherein the acidic amorphous silica alumina catalyst has a BET surface area of greater than 200 m 2 /g.

7. The process of claim 1 wherein the hydrothermal hydrocatalytic catalyst is a heterogeneous catalyst.

8. The process of claim 1 wherein the solid biomass is a lignocellulosic biomass.

9. The process of claim 1 wherein the higher hydrocarbons stream is hydrotreated thereby producing a hydrocarbons stream containing aliphatic hydrocarbons.

10. The process of claim 2 wherein the higher hydrocarbons stream is hydrotreated thereby producing a hydrocarbons stream containing aliphatic hydrocarbons.

11. The process of claim 3 wherein the higher hydrocarbons stream is hydrotreated thereby producing a hydrocarbons stream containing aliphatic hydrocarbons.

12. The process of claim 6 wherein the higher hydrocarbons stream is hydrotreated thereby producing a hydrocarbons stream containing aliphatic hydrocarbons.

13. The process of claim 1 wherein a reaction pressure in the step c is in a range of from atmospheric pressure to about 200 psi.

14. The process of claim 13 wherein the higher hydrocarbons stream is hydrotreated thereby producing a hydrocarbons stream containing aliphatic hydrocarbons.