Vanya Marcia Duarte Pasa
Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brazil
Title: Biokerosene and green diesel from macauba oils via catalytic deoxygenation over Pd/C
Biography
Biography: Vanya Marcia Duarte Pasa
Abstract
Macauba is a palm tree with good oil productivity (6.2 ton/ha), is native to Central and South America and is not exploited for food purposes. Its oils have been noted as an important alternative for the production of biofuels, especially for aviation. Th is study investigated deoxygenation catalyzed by 5% w/w of palladium on charcoal (Pd/C) reduced in situ using crude and previously hydrolyzed macauba pulp and almond oils with diff erent compositions and acidity values. The effect of the fatty composition and nature of the feedstock, reaction pressure, atmosphere, presence of stirring and use of the Pd/C catalyst were studied. The results indicated high selectivity with a predominance of saturated linear hydrocarbons that correspond to green diesel, followed by biojet fuel hydrocarbons. Oxygen removal was favored for free fatty acids with long carbon chains, for which decarbonylation and/or decarboxylation predominates. The highest content of hydrocarbons (85% w/w) was obtained in the reaction of hydrolyzed macauba almond oil at 10 bar of H2, 300ºC, 5 hours of reaction and stirring at 700 rpm. This green product has potential applications as a dropin substitute for fossil fuels.