Renewable Butene Production through Dehydration Reactions over Nano-HZSM-5/γ-Al2O3 Hybrid Catalysts

Polymers without Petrochemicals: Sustainable Routes to Conventional Monomers

Access to a wide range of plastic materials has been rationalized by the increased demand from growing populations and the development of high-throughput production systems. Plastic materials at low costs with reliable properties have been utilized in many everyday products. Multibillion-dollar companies are established around these plastic materials, and each polymer takes years to optimize, secure intellectual property, comply with the regulatory bodies such as the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals and the Environmental Protection Agency and develop consumer confidence. Therefore, developing a fully sustainable new plastic material with even a slightly different chemical structure is a costly and long process. Hence, the production of the common plastic materials with exactly the same chemical structures that does not require any new registration processes better reflects the reality of how to address the critical future of sustainable plastics. In this review, we have highlighted the very recent examples on the synthesis of common monomers using chemicals from sustainable feedstocks that can be used as a like-for-like substitute to prepare conventional petrochemical-free thermoplastics.

Potentials of bio-butanol conversion to valuable products

In the last decade, there was observed a growing demand for both n-butanol as a potential fuel or fuel additive, and propylene as the only raw material for production of alcohol and other more bulky propylene chemical derivatives with faster growing outputs (polymers, propylene oxide, and acrylic acid). The predictable oilfield depletion and the European Green Deal adoption stimulated interest in alternative processes for n-butanol production, especially those involving bio-based materials. Their commercialization will promote additional market penetration of n-butanol for its application as a basic chemical. We analyze briefly the current status of two most advanced bio-based processes, i.e. ethanol–to-n-butanol and acetone–butanol–ethanol (ABE) fermentation. In the second part of the review, studies of n-butanol and ABE conversion to valuable products are considered with an emphasis on the most perspective catalytic systems and variants of the future processes realization.

Dehydration of butanol towards butenes over MFI, FAU and MOR: influence of zeolite topology

The effect of zeolite topology on the kinetics, selectivity and catalyst stability for the dehydration of butanol is studied experimentally and through microkinetic modeling.