Isopropyl Alcohol Effects on the Electro-Catalytic Hydrogenation of Guaiacol

The complete electrocatalytic hydrogenation-hydrodeoxygenation of guaiacol to produce cyclohexane is demonstrated for the first time using isopropyl alcohol as a polar protic solvent in a stirred slurry electrocatalytic slurry reactor with Pt/C as a catalyst. The addition of 25% IPA on 0.1 M guaiacol reduction with the presence of 1.0 M methanesulfonic acid and 0.25 M sodium chloride both for catholyte and anolyte was most effective for electrocatalytic guaiacol hydrogenation-hydrodeoxygenation at -66 mA.cm -2 current density and 60 °C for 4 h using 0.5 g 5% Pt/C catalyst. In terms of the separation process, the addition of IPA is very compatible with the system, as the chemical produced, cyclohexane, can later be introduced into the separation process as an entraining agent.