Conversion of Sugarcane Bagasse to Bioenergy over a Metal Oxide Catalyst

Valorization of sugarcane bagasse to high-quality biofuel precursors using metal oxide catalysts was studied in this work. Preliminary results showed that a hydrocarbon selectivity of 14.9 wt% can be achieved in the upgraded sugarcane bagasse derived pyrolysis oils. Non-condensed phenolic hydroxyl groups were almost eliminated in the upgraded pyrolysis oils. A detailed performance study of the metal oxide catalysts was carried out for the reaction condition optimization (temperature, time, catalyst loading). Different solvents (e.g. ethanol, methanol, isopropanol, acetone) were tested in this upgrading reaction. A series model compound study was conducted to study the possible repolymerization and condensation in this catalytic upgrading reaction. ¹H, ³¹P, HSQC NMM, GPC, and GC-MS were used for pyrolysis oil structural analysis for understanding the reaction pathways. A stability test of the catalyst and a detailed characterization of the fresh/used catalysts were performed and was carried out.