Small Angle Neutron Scattering to Probe Coking in Catalytic Biomass Conversion

Microporous materials, particularly zeolites (aluminosilicates) are widely used industrial solid-acid catalysts for bulk hydrocarbon transformations, including the methanol-to-olefin, fluid-catalysed cracking and dewaxing processes. More recently we have shown that zeolites, particularly Fe-doped ZSM-5 (FeZSM-5) have significant potential for converting biomass components (in this case Furan) into more valuable fuels. This represents a sustainable pathway for future fuel production from a renewable feedstock. Despite the exceptional activity of these systems, the aromatic nature of most biomass components means that under reaction conditions coke molecules rapidly form, limiting the catalytic lifetime. To improve this process, it is vital we understand the deactivation mechanism (coke formation) occurring in our process, this will lead to intelligent modifications in catalyst design. Primarily we will compare “Fresh FeZSM-5” with “Used FeZSM-5” to probe the location, and nature of coke, complementing our ongoing Raman and UV/Vis work. Specifically, we will compare “Used” samples where the Furan reagent is hydrogenous (h4-Furan) and deuterated (d4-Furan), varying the SLD of the coke phase, whilst the coke location is constant, aiding the model fitting, to understand the evolution of coke species.