Catalytic Activities of NiMo Carbide Supported on SiO₂ for the Hydrodeoxygenation of Ethyl Benzoate, Acetone, and Acetaldehyde

Abstract

Bimetallic NiMo carbide supported on SiO2 has been synthesized by means of a temperature-programmed reaction. Characterization was performed by elemental analysis, Brunauer−Emmett−Teller (BET) surface area analysis, temperature-programmed reduction (H2−TPR), temperature-programmed oxidation (TPO), temperature-programmed desorption of NH3 (NH3−TPD), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Elemental analysis and TPO characterization indicated that carbon was successfully introduced into the lattice of NiMo carbide by a temperature-programmed reaction with a mixture of H2 and CH4. Ethyl benzoate was used as a model molecule to investigate the hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) activities of NiMo carbide. As a comparison, HDO reactions of ethyl benzoate were also investigated over Mo carbide as well as CoMo sulfide. The results indicated that NiMo carbide was the most stable catalyst for HDO among the samples. On the basis of the hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) evaluation of ethyl benzoate and characterization of passivated and used NiMo carbide, it can be deduced that the changes of catalytic activity of NiMo carbide, during HDO reactions, may be ascribed to oxygen accumulation as well as coke deposition on the surface of the catalyst. HDO reactions of acetone and acetaldehyde were also investigated over NiMo carbide. The results indicated that NiMo carbide was a highly active and stable catalyst for HDO of acetone and acetaldehyde.