(98a) Process Development for High Octane Number Gasoline Production from Lignin

Biofuels production from lignocellulosic biomass will reduce the nation’s reliance on imported fossil fuels while yielding economic benefits. This project developed chemical methods for processing lignin through the steps of dissolution, depolymerization, deoxygenation, and separation.

Ionic liquids were used as solvent and lignin was catalytically depolymerized in a hydrogen environment generated in-situ from formic acid decomposition to prevent repolymerization of the fragmented molecules. In the hydrodeoxygenation step, both model compounds and lignin depolymerized oligomers were studied.  A series of catalysts, including Pd/alumina, Ni/alumina, Ni-Mo/alumina, and some custom-prepared catalysts were tested for the catalytic hydrodeoxygenation activities. Two catalysts were found to be very reactive and contaminants tolerant for hydrogenation of the depolymerized lignin oligomers to high octane number aromatics.