Latest research and technological breakthroughs in bioglycerol to propylene catalysis

Tuesday, May 2, 2023

11:40 AM – 12:00 PM MDT

Room: 403

Presenting Author(s)

ME

Mohamed El Doukkali, PhD (he/him/his)

Researcher/ associate professor in physic-chemistry
University of Lille/University of Sultan Moulay Slimane,
lille, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France

Slides

Co-Author(s)

MB

Meryem BAHLOURI (she/her/hers)

PhD student
University of Lille
lille, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France
SP

Sebastien PAUL

Professor
ecole Centrale de Lille
lille, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France
Franck Y M DUMEIGNIL, PhD

Professor
University of Lille
lille, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France

Abstract: Bioglycerol-to-propylene (GTP) routes is experiencing great research advances both at the level of fundamental catalysis and process design to become in the future a connecting bridge between the biorefinery and polyolefins industries. This trend is stimulated by the worldwide efforts to mitigate the current climate changes and the future depletion of fossil resources, because: i) crude bioglycerol is yet largely considered as a waste in the world-scale biodiesel industry, and ii) the global polyolefins industry is mainly suffering from the so-called “propylene gap” - excess of market demand over its real production. In our project of review, we aim at bringing together contributions from early discoveries (5-10 years) up to the most recent GTP-related publications and patents. The objective is to offer to the readers an integral analysis of the most relevant mechanistic and engineering breakthroughs on the GTP catalysis to go beyond the general description. As illustrated in scheme 1, we will cover; a) high-temperature GTP processes, b,c) multi-steps reactions, d) tandem or double-beds approach, and e) single-step hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) strategy. We will systematically emphasize the main progresses made in the design of efficient catalysts and in the elucidation of their active sites, thus, highlighting state-of-the art preparation, functionalization and characterization methods. Our recent insights on single-step GTP catalysis published in Appl.Catal.B:Environ.324(2023)122280 will critically confronted with the current state-of-the art GTP routes to fill existing gaps and postulate future trends. The GTP routes are also assessed in terms of reaction pathways over versatile metallic, acid and bifunctional catalysts to understand which C-O bonds are removed from glycerol and which C=C bond is formed in propylene. After this, a critical comparison between all the mentioned GTP configurations will be discussed as a function of the thermodynamic limits and of the conditions affecting the catalysts activity, selectivity and stability. In view of the promising market potentialities, techno-economic and environmental indicators will be highlighted for chosen GTP routes. Thus, we expect to provide a panoramic picture about the most relevant strategies for producing sustainable propylene, thereby, opening new opportunities for a zero-waste biorefinery-to-olefins network with an atom efficiency close to 100%.