Flexibilization of Biorefineries: Tuning Lignin Hydrogenation by Hydrogen Partial Pressure

Abstract

The present study describes an interesting and practical catalytic system that allows flexible conversion of lignin into aromatic or aliphatic hydrocarbons, depending on the hydrogen partial pressure. A combination of experiment and theory shows that the product distribution between aromatics and aliphatics can be simply tuned by controlling the availability of hydrogen on the catalyst surface. Noticeably, these pathways lead to almost complete oxygen removal from lignin biomass, yielding high-quality hydrocarbons. Thus, hydrogen–lignin co-refining by using this catalytic system provides high flexibility in hydrogen storage/consumption towards meeting different regional and temporal demands.