Study on reaction characteristics of phenolic hydroxyl in coal by using the model compound during direct coal liquefaction

Abstract

The reaction characteristics of phenolic hydroxyl group were studied under the conditions of direct coal liquefaction. 2-naphthol was used as a coal model compound in this study. Under the conditions of with and without catalysts, a series of experiments were conducted at different temperatures, pressures and reaction time. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and gas chromatography were used to identify and quantify the reactants and products respectively. The conversion of 2-naphthol rises with the increase of reaction temperature, initial pressure and catalyst amount. The results indicated that temperature had a significant effect on 2-naphthol conversion, which promoted the dehydroxylation reaction. However, initial pressure had an important influence on the hydrogenation of 2-naphthol and naphthalene. The iron catalyst plays a significant role of cracking instead of hydrogenation. It is concluded that the harsh reaction conditions of high temperature, high pressure, and more catalyst are conducive to promoting dehydroxylation of 2-naphthol. The reaction mechanism was put forward based the experimental results, in which 2-tetralone was an intermediate.