Functional Catalysts for Self-Supported Hydrodeoxygenation of Anisole in Water

As the need for safeguarding the environment and fostering sustainable economic growth increases, the effective transformation of biomass resources has garnered significant interest. Hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) stands as a crucial and hopeful route for transforming biomass into biofuels or chemicals. A critical limitation of this technology lies in its reliance on high-pressure hydrogen, a costly resource known for its high costs and safety concerns. Therefore, there is a need to design and develop efficient lignin conversion technologies and the corresponding efficient catalysts using hydrogen generated in situ from lignin as the hydrogen source. In this paper, the self-hydrogenolysis reaction of anisole using the hydrogen source in the reactants to produce benzene was proposed, and the corresponding efficient and stable encapsulated Ni-based catalysts were developed. A series of carbon-coated Ni-based catalysts (Ni@C-T) were prepared for the self-hydrogenolysis reaction of anisole using a one-step pyrolysis method with acetylacetonate metal as the carbon and metal source by adjusting the pyrolysis temperature. Under the reaction conditions of 230 °C, 2 h, and 1 MPa N2, 15.42% conversion of anisole and 57.43% benzene selectivity were obtained. In addition, it was observed that the Ni@C-500 catalyst exhibited good cycling stability.