Insights into the effect of the catalytic functions on selective production of ethylene glycol from lignocellulosic biomass over carbon supported ruthenium and tungsten catalysts

Abstract

The one-pot conversion of cellulose to ethylene glycol (EG) was investigated using a combination of a ruthenium catalyst supported on carbon nanotubes modified with nitric acid (Ru/CNT₁) and a tungsten catalyst supported on commercial non-treated carbon nanotubes (W/CNT₀). This physical mixture allowed to obtain an EG yield of 41% in just 5 h at 205 °C and 50 bar of H₂, which overcame the result obtained using a Ru-W bimetallic catalyst supported on commercial carbon nanotubes (35%) under the same conditions. Tissue paper, a potential waste cellulosic material, and eucalyptus were also tested under the same conditions and EG yields of 34 and 36%, respectively, were attained over the aforementioned catalytic physical mixture. To the best of our knowledge, this work presents for the first time the catalytic conversion of lignocellulosic materials, namely tissue paper and eucalyptus, directly into EG by an environmentally friendly process.

Keywords: Ethylene glycol; Hydrolytic hydrogenation; Lignocellulosic biomass; Multi-walled carbon nanotubes; Surface chemistry.