WxC-β-SiC Nanocomposite Catalysts Used in Aqueous Phase Hydrogenation of Furfural
Jacek Rogowski,
Mariusz Andrzejczuk,
Joanna Berlowska,
Michal Binczarski,
Dorota Kregiel,
Andrzej Kubiak,
Magdalena Modelska,
Elzbieta Szubiakiewicz,
Andrei Stanishevsky,
Jolanta Tomaszewska,
Izabela Alina Witonska
Affiliations
Jacek Rogowski
Institute of General and Ecological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Lodz University of Technology, Zeromskiego 116, 90-924 Lodz, Poland
Mariusz Andrzejczuk
Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering, Warsaw University of Technology, Woloska 141, 02-507 Warsaw, Poland
Joanna Berlowska
Institute of Fermentation Technology and Microbiology, Faculty of Food Science and Biotechnology, Lodz University of Technology, Wolczanska 171/173, 90-924 Lodz, Poland
Michal Binczarski
Institute of General and Ecological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Lodz University of Technology, Zeromskiego 116, 90-924 Lodz, Poland
Dorota Kregiel
Institute of Fermentation Technology and Microbiology, Faculty of Food Science and Biotechnology, Lodz University of Technology, Wolczanska 171/173, 90-924 Lodz, Poland
Andrzej Kubiak
Department of Semiconductor and Optoelectronic Devices, Faculty of Electrical, Electronic, Computer and Control Engineering, Lodz University of Technology, ul. Wolczanska 211/215, 90-924 Lodz, Poland
Magdalena Modelska
Institute of General and Ecological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Lodz University of Technology, Zeromskiego 116, 90-924 Lodz, Poland
Elzbieta Szubiakiewicz
Institute of General and Ecological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Lodz University of Technology, Zeromskiego 116, 90-924 Lodz, Poland
Andrei Stanishevsky
Department of Physics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 1300 University Blvd., Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
Jolanta Tomaszewska
Institute of General and Ecological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Lodz University of Technology, Zeromskiego 116, 90-924 Lodz, Poland
Izabela Alina Witonska
Institute of General and Ecological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Lodz University of Technology, Zeromskiego 116, 90-924 Lodz, Poland
This study investigates the effects of the addition of tungsten on the structure, phase composition, textural properties and activities of β-SiC-based catalysts in the aqueous phase hydrogenation of furfural. Carbothermal reduction of SiO2 in the presence of WO3 at 1550 °C in argon resulted in the formation of WxC-β-SiC nanocomposite powders with significant variations in particle morphology and content of WxC-tipped β-SiC nano-whiskers, as revealed by TEM and SEM-EDS. The specific surface area (SSA) of the nanocomposite strongly depended on the amount of tungsten and had a notable impact on its catalytic properties for the production of furfuryl alcohol (FA) and tetrahydrofurfuryl alcohol (THFA). Nanocomposite WxC-β-SiC catalysts with 10 wt % W in the starting mixture had the highest SSA and the smallest WxC crystallites. Some 10 wt % W nanocomposite catalysts demonstrated up to 90% yield of THFA, in particular in the reduction of furfural derived from biomass, although the reproducible performance of such catalysts has yet to be achieved.
