04/05/2023
By Kelly Craig

The Center for Energy Innovation invites you to join us for the next presentation in our webinar series.

When: Tuesday, April 11, 10-11 a.m.
Where: Online (Zoom).
What: "Liquid-Phase Catalytic Conversion of Biomass to Fuels and Chemicals"
Who: Prof. Thomas J. Schwartz (Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, University of Maine)

Abstract:

The prevalence of “light” (C1-C3) hydrocarbons obtained from shale gas requires us to find alternative sources of larger molecules suitable for producing commodity and specialty chemicals. Biomass is attractive in this regard because of its 5- and 6-carbon sugar content, and it natively contains the oxygen needed high-value chemicals. However, with a carbon-to-oxygen ratio near unity, selective de-functionalization of biomass is a key challenge for producing biobased chemicals. For many cases, this can be accomplished by hydrogenolysis, where C-O bonds are broken by addition of H2. While many catalysts are active for this reaction, they are not always selective. Ru/TiO2 is known to be selective catalyst for C-O hydrogenolysis in the presence of aromatic rings, leading to production of toluene, benzene, etc. from phenols. Here, we discuss the influence of water on this reaction, which is important to consider when upgrading biomass (that contains ca. 50% water after harvest). We also show that the same catalyst, used under milder conditions, can be used for selective hydrogenolysis of substituted tetrahydrofuroic acids, which allows us to produce biorenewable thermoplastics. A key feature to these reactions is the impact of the solvent on not only the activity of the catalyst but also the selectivity to desired reaction products. We will conclude our presentation by highlighting recent efforts to disentangle how the identity of the solvent impacts catalytic reaction rates.

About Thomas Schwartz:

Prof. Schwartz earned BS degrees in Chemical & Biological Engineering from the University of Maine and a PhD at University of Wisconsin. An Associate Professor since 2021, Schwartz joined the Department of Chemical & Biomedical Engineering at the University of Maine in 2015 as an Assistant Professor. His research group seeks to develop a molecular-level understanding of processes that occur on catalytic surfaces used for the conversion of carbon-based feedstocks to chemicals and fuels.