Abstract
Two types of cattail flower-derived nanoporous carbon (NPC), i.e., NPC activated with KOH and H3PO4, were produced and characterized using several techniques (e.g., Raman spectroscopy, nitrogen adsorption, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy). The influence of the carbon support characteristics on the particle sizes and chemical states of Pd in the synthesized Pd/NPC catalysts, which affect the catalytic activity and product selectivity, was analyzed. The surface chemistry properties of NPC were the main factors influencing the Pd particle size; by contrast, the textural properties did not significantly affect the size of the Pd particles on NPC supports. The use of Pd nanoparticles supported on the rich-functionalized surface carbons obtained by H3PO4 activation led to superior catalytic activity for the polyunsaturated fatty acid methyl ester (poly-FAME) hydrogenation, which could achieve 90% poly-FAME conversion and 84% selectivity towards monounsaturated FAME after a 45-min reaction time. This is due to the small Pd nanoparticle size and the high acidity of the catalysts, which are beneficial for the partial hydrogenation of poly-FAME in biodiesel. Conversely, the Pd nanoparticles supported on the high-surface-area carbon by KOH activation, with large Pd particle size and low acidity, required a longer reaction time to reach similar conversion and product selectivity levels.
Highlights
The elemental analysis revealed that raw cattail flower (CTF) had 54 wt% of carbon, 37 wt%
Of the SBET of both carbons in the corresponding Pd catalyst was similar, about 29%; it can be implied that the textural properties had a lesser effect on the Pd dispersion. These results suggested that the size of the Pd particle of these Pd/nanoporous carbon (NPC) catalysts is predominantly
The NPC-K and NPC-H supports were prepared from the CTF biomass via hydrothermal carbonization-assisted chemical activation using KOH and H3 PO4, respectively
Summary
The use of nanoporous carbon (NPC) as a support material for precious metals is significantly increasing, owing to its unique characteristics: its inertness in both acidic and basic media, its ability to delay active phase sintering, and the ability to recover precious metals from the spent catalysts by burning the carbon off. The pore size distribution and surface chemistry properties can be modified according to the prospective application. The supported catalysts represent a higher surface area of active catalytic phases compared to the bulk metal [1,2,3,4]. The catalytic properties of the supported catalysts are mainly influenced by the texture and surface chemistry of the NPC support, affecting the activity and selectivity of the catalyst [5,6,7,8]
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