Abstract
Vanillin hydrodeoxygenation was investigated using Pt/C catalyst in the temperature and total pressure ranges of 80–200 °C and 20–30 bar in several solvents, such as tetrahydrofuran, 2-propanol, water and in solventless conditions using 1:1 mass ratio of vanillin to guaiacol. The results revealed that the rate increased with increasing solvent polarity as follows: tetrahydrofuran < 2-propanol < water. The main product was p-creosol with 66% selectivity at complete vanillin conversion in HDO under 30 bar total pressure at 100 °C after 4 h using water as a solvent. In a solventless experiment with 1:1 mass ratio of vanillin–guaiacol as a feedstock only vanillin was transformed to p-creosol with 91% conversion in 4 h at 200 °C under 30 bar total pressure, while guaiacol did not produce any HDO products. Both thermodynamic analysis and kinetic modelling were performed. Vanillin hydrodeoxygenation resulted in formation of p-creosol over Pt/C catalyst using an optimum vanillin initial concentration in water solution. From the industrial point of view vanillin hydrodeoxygenation proceeded rapidly giving high yields of p-creosol in solventless hydrodeoxygenation of vanillin-guaiacol mixture, while guaiacol was not deoxygenated.
Graphical Abstract

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Abbreviations
- K :
-
Rate constant
- K 0 j :
-
Equilibrium constant at standard conditions for reaction j
- K eq :
-
Adsorption equilibrium constant
- N :
-
Moles (mol)
- P :
-
Pressure (bar)
- P 0 :
-
Standard pressure (bar)
- R :
-
Reaction rate
- R 2 :
-
Coefficient of determination
- R :
-
Ideal gas constant (J/K/mol)
- T :
-
Absolute temperature (K)
- T 0 :
-
Absolute standard temperature (K)
- y:
-
Yield
- ΔG 0 f :
-
Gibbs free energy of formation at standard conditions (J/mol)
- ΔG 0 r :
-
Gibbs free energy of reaction at standard conditions (J/mol)
- ΔG Φ r,j :
-
Gibbs free energy of reaction at 1 bar and chosen temperature (J/mol)
- ΔG r,j :
-
Gibbs free energy of reaction at a fixed temperature and pressure (J/mol)
- ΔH 0 f :
-
Enthalpy of formation at standard conditions (J/mol)
- ΔH 0 r :
-
Enthalpy of reaction at standard conditions (J/mol)
- ρ B :
-
Catalyst bulk density
- θ :
-
Objective function
- ν i,j :
-
Stoichiometric matrix composed by i components and j reactions (–)
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Sulman, A., Mäki-Arvela, P., Bomont, L. et al. Vanillin Hydrodeoxygenation: Kinetic Modelling and Solvent Effect. Catal Lett 148, 2856–2868 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10562-018-2478-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10562-018-2478-1