Metal Phosphate Catalysts for Selective Alcohol Dehydration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for producing olefins, dienes, and polyenes from alcohols are energy-intensive and emit significant CO2, relying on fossil fuels, and lack efficient catalysts for selective dehydration of butan-1-ol to but-2-ene, which is crucial for metathesis reactions.
Innovation Solution
Development of robust, selective, and regenerable catalysts based on metal phosphates, such as lanthanum, neodymium, and gadolinium phosphates, which facilitate the dehydration of alcohols to produce olefins, dienes, and polyenes at lower temperatures, allowing for the conversion of alcohols like propan-1-ol, butan-1-ol, and ethanol into propene and but-2-ene.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If steam cracking or catalytic cracking of fossil fuels is used to produce olefins, then large quantities of olefins can be obtained, but energy consumption increases and CO2 emissions increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the fundamental reaction parameters by using alcohol dehydration instead of hydrocarbon cracking, operating at lower temperatures (200-400°C) compared to steam cracking (700-900°C), thereby reducing energy consumption while maintaining olefin production
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces alcohol as an intermediary substance derived from renewable resources, replacing direct fossil fuel cracking. This intermediary approach allows for lower energy input processes while achieving the same end product (olefins)
Solution Approach 3:
The patent replaces the high-energy thermal cracking mechanism with a catalytic dehydration mechanism, using solid acid catalysts to facilitate the reaction at lower temperatures, thereby substituting a high-energy physical process with a lower-energy chemical catalytic process
2Quantity of substance
If steam cracking or catalytic cracking of fossil fuels is used to produce olefins, then large quantities of olefins can be obtained, but CO2 emissions increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces alcohol as an intermediary substance derived from renewable resources, replacing direct fossil fuel cracking. This intermediary approach allows for lower energy input processes while achieving the same end product (olefins)
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the oxygen-containing functional group from alcohols through dehydration, converting renewable alcohol feedstocks into hydrocarbon olefins, thereby separating the useful hydrocarbon product from the renewable feedstock while reducing dependence on fossil fuels
3Quantity of substance
If conventional catalysts are used for alcohol dehydration, then olefins can be produced, but the dehydration of butan-1-ol to but-2-ene lacks selectivity and efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating catalysts with specific active sites having particular acid strength and distribution characteristics. The catalysts are designed with controlled pore structures and acid site densities that selectively favor the formation of but-2-ene from butan-1-ol over other possible products
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite catalyst materials combining metal oxides with specific pore structures and acid sites. These composite catalysts integrate multiple functional properties (acidity, porosity, thermal stability) to achieve high selectivity for but-2-ene production from butan-1-ol dehydration
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The catalysts enable efficient and selective production of olefins and dienes with high selectivity and stability, reducing the need for fossil fuels and minimizing environmental impact by operating at lower temperatures and being easily regenerable, thus offering a competitive and sustainable process for synthesizing these hydrocarbons.
Implementation Method 1
catalytic conversion of at least one alcohol having a carbon chain of at least three carbon atoms and being different from propan-2-ol, in the presence of at least one catalyst based on at least one phosphate of a metal or of several metals M
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a method for producing an olefin, a diene or a polyene, by catalytic conversion of at least one alcohol having a carbonated chain of at least three carbon atoms and different from propan-2-ol, in the presence of at least one catalyst based on the phosphate of a metal or a plurality of metals M, M being selected from the 15 lanthanides (lanthanum, cerium, praseodymium, neodymium, promethium, samarium, europium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, holmium, erbium, thulium, ytterbium, lutetium), yttrium, scandium and boron. The invention also relates to the applications of said method.