Ni catalyst synthesized by hydrothermal deposition on the polymeric matrix in the supercritical deoxygenation of fatty acids

Abstract

In the current work, the use of Ni-containing catalyst on the base of hypercrosslinked polystyrene in the stearic acid (SA) hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) in the medium of supercritical n-hexane is presented. The catalyst was synthesized by the hydrothermal deposition of Ni-containing particles into the pores of the polymeric matrix in the medium of superheated water. It was found that the catalyst is characterized by the high surface area and the uniform deposition of the active phase on the catalyst surface. Ni in the catalyst is represented by NiOOH. The mean particle diameter of the active phase was found to be 5.5 nm. The catalyst showed high efficiency in the SA HDO in the medium of supercritical n-hexane reaching the C16–C17 yield up to 90 at 100% substrate conversion. It was shown that the catalyst maintained its activity in minimum five consecutive runs without sufficient loose selectivity.