Catalytic Conversion of Anisole: Evidence of Oxygen Removal in Reactions with Hydrogen

Plant biomass is a potentially valuable renewable source of fuels and chemicals. Lignocellulose can be rapidly transformed into liquids by pyrolysis, giving “bio-oil,” but the high oxygen content leads to immiscibility with fossil fuels, instability, and corrosion [ 1 – 3 ]. Bio-oils typically contain several hundred compounds [ 4 , 5 ], and an understanding of the reaction networks in their catalytic upgrading is limited; even information characterizing the upgrading of individual bio-oil compounds is scarce [ 6 – 10 ]. Our approach to begin unravelling this chemistry, and specifically to understand oxygen removal reactions, was to investigate the conversion of a bio-oil compound, anisole, chosen as a prototype because it has both an ether linkage and an aromatic ring. Reactions were catalyzed by a solid acid (HY zeolite, Zeolyst CBV 720) and separately by a catalyst consisting of a metal dispersed on an acidic support (Pt/Al 2 O 3 , Sigma–Aldrich, 1% wt Pt). The goal of the research was to develop detailed reaction networks, characterized by numerous connected pathways, for the conversion of anisole with catalysts representing these two important classes of catalysts.