Catalytic Transformations
of Birch Kraft Pulp
- Publication date
- Publisher
Abstract
The goal of the work was to investigate hydrolysis and
hydrogenation
of a mixture of cellulose and hemicelluloses. Hydrolysis and hydrolytic
hydrogenation of bleached birch (betula) kraft pulp from a Finnish
pulping mill and microcrystalline cellulose (Aldrich) into sugars
and sugar alcohols was carried out in the liquid phase in a batch
mode under 20 bar of hydrogen at 458 K. Proton forms of different
microporous and mesoporous materials, Pt modified MCM-48, MCM-41 mesoporous
material, and Pt on Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> were used in the catalytic
experiments. The conversion of cellulose and hemicelluloses was dependent
on the type of zeolite structure, strength of active sites, their
number, and presence of metal. The ratio of formed monomers/dimers
varied because of the pore size of the used catalyst. The yields of
the main products, for example, sugars, sugar alcohols, and furfurals
(xylose, glucose, xylitol, sorbitol, furfural, furfuryl alcohol, and
5-hydroxymethyl furfural), were shown to depend on the type of substrate
as well as on the active sites, acidity, presence of metal, and structure
of the zeolite and mesoporous material
