Recent Advances on Sustainable and Green Production of Light Olefins From Short‐Chain Alcohols via on‐Purpose Selective Catalytic Dehydration

Light olefins are primary building blocks for various value-added chemicals and have become an indispensable part of our daily lives. Steam and fluid catalytic cracking are traditional methods for production of light olefins, which are highly energy-intensive, amounting to significant CO₂ emissions. In light of the above aspects, the increasing demand for light olefins needs to be met through environmentally sustainable, energy efficient, and on-purpose production routes having lower carbon footprint. Among them, selective catalytic dehydration of renewable alcohols to light olefins offers an attractive on-purpose production route. Recent advances covering catalysts and processes in the production of light olefins from ethanol, C3 and C4 alcohols have been analyzed in this article. The narrative encompasses chemical composition of each catalytic system, role of supports and reaction parameters. A short overview regarding production scenarios of short-chain alcohols from renewable feedstocks has been discussed at the beginning of each section.