Hydrodeoxygenation of Guaiacol Catalyzed by ZrO2–CeO2-Supported Nickel Catalysts with High Loading

Ni/ZrO 2 –CeO 2 catalysts with high loading of nickel have been prepared by the coprecipitation method and employed to investigate the catalytic hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) performance of guaiacol. The materials obtained were characterized using N 2 adsorption–desorption, X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, H 2 -TPR, CO chemisorption, and NH 3 -TPD. For Ni/ZrO 2 –CeO 2 catalysts, the formation of the ZrO 2 −CeO 2 solid solutions enhances the dispersion of the metal Ni. The oxygen vacancies resulting from Ce 3+ species in Ni/ZrO 2 –CeO 2 promote the adsorption and activation of the oxygen-containing group in guaiacol molecules and thereby improve the ability of the catalyst to break the C–O bond. The addition of ZrO 2 increases the number of acidic sites of the catalysts. These factors synergistically enhance the HDO performance of the catalysts.