Mesoporous aluminosilicate nanofibers with a low Si/Al ratio as acidic catalyst for hydrodeoxygenation of phenol

Mesoporous aluminosilicate nanofibers (mASNF) were prepared using hard and soft dual templates approach. The mesoporous material was fully characterized and its acidic nature was confirmed by FTIR spectroscopy of pyridine adsorption and Al-27/Si-29 solid state NMR. Thanks to the incorporated aluminum atoms, the acidic material showed high hydrothermal stability which is an essential property for biomass conversion applications. The catalytic performance of Pd supported on mASNF for hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) of lignin model compound was also investigated. A complete conversion and a high selectivity towards cyclohexane (up to 95%) starting from phenol were achieved with this bifunctional catalyst. In comparison, no cyclohexane has been produced with a non-acidic material which underlines the importance of acidic sites in HDO process selectivity control. Moreover, the catalyst can be recycled without losing its initial structure.