Compositions and methods related to the production of acrylonitrile

1. A method comprising the step of:

a) contacting a first product comprising ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, and glycerol with a catalyst composition, thereby producing a second product comprising acrolein and acetaldehyde, wherein the catalyst composition comprises a catalyst having the formula:

M1M2 x M3 y O z

wherein M1 is a metal promoting dehydrogenation and C—O cleavage,

wherein M2 is a metal with acid sites promoting dehydration,

wherein M3 is an amphoteric catalyst support, with acid and base sites, promoting both dehydration and dehydrogenation in conjunction with M1,

wherein x is a molar ratio from about 0.25 to about 4,

wherein y is a molar ratio from about 0.25 to about 4,

wherein z is the total amount of oxygen bound to M1, M2, and M3 and corresponds to the sum of the oxidation states of ML M2, and M3.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises the steps of:

b) separating at least a portion of the acetaldehyde from the second product; and

c) following step b) converting at least a portion of the acrolein in the second product to acrylonitrile.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first product is produced from C5 and/or C6 sugars in a single step using a multifunctional catalyst.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the C5 and/or C6 sugars is C5 and/or C6 hemicellulose and cellulose derived sugars.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein from about 10 wt % to about 90 wt % of the propylene glycol and glycerol in the first product are converted to acrolein.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second product comprises from about 20 wt % to about 75 wt % of acrolein.

7. The method of claim 3 , wherein the multifunctional catalyst comprises one or more metals selected from the group consisting of Cu, Zn, Sn, Ni, Pt, Pd, Ru, and Re, and a support.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the support is selected from the group consisting of Al 2 O 3 , SiO 2 , carbon, TiO 2 , and MgO.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein step a) is performed at atmospheric pressure.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein M1 is selected from the group consisting of Cu, Zn, and Sn.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein M2 is selected from the group consisting of W and Fe.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein M3 is selected from the group consisting of Zr, Al, Si, Mg, Ti, La, and Ce.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein x is from about 0.8 to about 2.2.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein y is from about 0.8 to about 2.2.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein M1 is Cu.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein M2 is W.

17. The method of claim 1 , wherein M3 is Zr.

18. The method of claim 1 , wherein the catalyst has the formula CuOWO 3 ZrO 2 , or CuOWO 3 TiO 2 , or CuOWO 3 SiO 2 .

19. A method comprising the step of:

a) contacting a first product comprising ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, and glycerol with a catalyst composition, thereby producing a second product comprising acrolein and acetaldehyde, wherein the catalyst composition comprises a catalyst having the formula:

M1M2 x M3 y O z

wherein M1 is a metal promoting dehydrogenation and C—O cleavage,

wherein M2 is a metal with acid sites promoting dehydration,

wherein M3 is an amphoteric catalyst support, with acid and base sites, promoting both dehydration and dehydrogenation in conjunction with M1,

wherein x is a molar ratio from about 0.25 to about 4,

wherein y is a molar ratio is about 11,

wherein z is the total amount of oxygen bound to M1, M2, and M3id corresponds to the sum of the oxidation states of M1, M2, and M3.

20. The method of claim 19 , wherein the method further comprises the steps of:

b) separating at least a portion of the acetaldehyde from the second product; and

c) following step b) converting at least a portion of the acrolein in the second product to acrylonitrile.