Abstract
The massive consumption of fossil fuels and associated environmental issues are leading to an increased interest in alternative resources such as biofuels. The renewable biofuels can be upgraded from bio-oils that are derived from biomass pyrolysis. Catalytic cracking and hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) are two of the most promising bio-oil upgrading processes for biofuel production. Heterogeneous catalysts are essential for upgrading bio-oil into hydrocarbon biofuel. Although advances have been achieved, the deactivation and regeneration of catalysts still remains a challenge. This review focuses on the current progress and challenges of heterogeneous catalyst application, deactivation, and regeneration. The technologies of catalysts deactivation, reduction, and regeneration for improving catalyst activity and stability are discussed. Some suggestions for future research including catalyst mechanism, catalyst development, process integration, and biomass modification for the production of hydrocarbon biofuels are provided.
Highlights
More than 80% of global energy supplies come from fossil fuels including coal, petroleum, and natural gas [1]
The results showed that the application of mild hydrogenation before bio-oil cracking significantly reduced the unstable components in bio-oil and suppressed coke deposition on HZSM-5
The results indicated that the deoxygenation activity of Ni2 P/SiO2 was higher than that of conventional catalysts including Ni/SiO2, Pd/C, ZSM-5, SiO2 –Al2 O3, and Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC)
Summary
More than 80% of global energy supplies come from fossil fuels including coal, petroleum, and natural gas [1] Environmental issues such as global warming and air pollution due to fossil fuel consumption, growing energy demand, and depletion of fossil fuels have stimulated the demand for renewable liquid fuels [2]. Biomass is a form of carbon–neutral energy because the CO2 released during its utilization is equal to the CO2 absorbed from the atmosphere during its growth through photosynthesis. It has lower contents of sulfur, nitrogen, and heavy metals than coal [4]. The challenges of fossil fuel depletion, climate change, and other environmental concerns may be addressed if biomass can be efficiently converted into valuable biofuels and chemicals with a low carbon footprint
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
