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Aromatic Hydrocarbon Production from Eucalyptus urophylla Pyrolysis over Several Metal‐Modified ZSM‐5 Catalysts
Author(s) -
Schultz Emerson L.,
Mullen Charles A.,
Boateng Akwasi A.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
energy technology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.91
H-Index - 44
eISSN - 2194-4296
pISSN - 2194-4288
DOI - 10.1002/ente.201600206
Subject(s) - catalysis , benzene , toluene , chemistry , hydrocarbon , zsm 5 , pyrolysis , xylene , aromatic hydrocarbon , methane , inorganic chemistry , selectivity , organic chemistry , zeolite
Metal‐modified HZSM‐5 catalysts were prepared by the ion exchange of NH 4 ZSM‐5 (SiO 2 /Al 2 O 3 =23) using Zn, Ga, Ni, and combinations thereof. The prepared catalysts were used to evaluate catalytic pyrolysis for the conversion of Eucalyptus urophylla to fuels and chemicals, specifically aromatic hydrocarbons, by using a micro‐scale pyrolysis reactor coupled with GC–MS. Two different biomass‐to‐catalyst ratios (1:5 and 1:10 w / w ) were studied. The catalyst prepared with Ga by total ion exchange (Ga‐HZSM‐5 B, ≈7 wt % Ga) yielded the highest amount of aromatic hydrocarbons, whereas the catalysts modified with Ni produced the lowest yield of aromatic hydrocarbons. A correlation between the methane yield and benzene and p ‐xylene selectivity was found for the catalysts, which was observed mainly for the Ni‐, Zn‐, and Ga‐Ni‐modified catalysts. The Ga‐modified catalysts were the most selective for xylenes, whereas the Ni‐based catalysts were the most selective for benzene production with a concurrent increase in methane production. The Zn‐modified catalysts were the most selective for toluene production.