EAPSI: Improving and Understanding the Catalysts used to Convert Biological Oils to Diesel Fuel

生物柴油是主要的可再生燃料，来源于植物油和动物脂肪等脂基原料；然而，有几个问题阻碍了生物柴油与传统石油柴油的完全替代。生物柴油吗?S的冷流动性能差，储存稳定性和发动机兼容性问题源于其氧含量。最近，人们的注意力已经转移到开发一种从脂基原料中去除氧的工艺，以产生一种化学性质与石油衍生燃料相同的可再生燃料。该奖项将通过派遣一名目前在肯塔基大学应用能源研究中心（CAER）工作的研究生到澳大利亚布里斯班的昆士兰大学（UQ）功能纳米材料卓越中心，帮助研究对这一过程至关重要的独特催化剂。该研究生将与昆士兰大学Jorge Beltramini博士的团队合作，利用那里可用的材料、技术和仪器来开发和理解将生物油转化为柴油的新催化剂。镍基催化剂作为一种最有希望将脂基原料转化为类燃料碳氢化合物的催化剂而备受关注。然而，对这些催化剂的几个方面的基本理解仍然存在重要的差距，包括载体孔隙度和形态的影响，催化剂制备方法，以及Ni和Ni促进剂的化学和电子状态对这些配方性能的影响。该项目将包括：1)独特介孔支架的合成；2)利用这些载体通过不同的方法制备镍基催化剂；3)催化和非催化催化剂的光谱研究，以获得催化科学技术中具有重要意义和广泛适用性的基础知识。回到美国后，不仅在CAER可以获得新的合成技术，而且在昆士兰大学合成的催化剂将被筛选其将脂质原料转化为类似燃料的碳氢化合物的能力。该奖项由美国国家科学基金会和澳大利亚科学院共同资助，隶属于东亚和太平洋暑期研究所项目，支持美国研究生进行暑期研究。

Biodiesel constitutes the major renewable fuel derived from lipid-based feedstocks such as vegetable oils and animal fats; however, several issues hinder biodiesel from being completely fungible with traditional petroleum diesel. Biodiesel?s poor cold flow properties, storage stability, and engine compatibility problems stem from its oxygen content. Recently, attention has been shifted to develop a process for the removal of oxygen from lipid-based feedstocks to generate a renewable fuel that is chemically identical to petroleum derived fuels. The award will help investigate unique catalysts that are vital to this process by sending a graduate student, currently working at the University of Kentucky Center for Applied Energy Research (CAER), to the Centre of Excellence for Functional Nanomaterials of the University of Queensland (UQ) in Brisbane, Australia. The graduate student will work with the group of Dr. Jorge Beltramini at UQ to harness the materials, know-how and instrumentation available there to develop and understand new catalysts for the conversion of biological oils to diesel fuel.Ni-based catalysts are attracting attention as some of the most promising formulations for the conversion of lipid-based feedstocks to fuel-like hydrocarbons. Nevertheless, important gaps in the fundamental understanding of several aspects of these catalysts remain, including the effect of the support porosity and morphology, catalyst preparation method, and the chemical and electronic state of both Ni and Ni promoters on the performance of these formulations. The project will include: 1) the synthesis of unique mesoporous supports; 2) the preparation of Ni-based catalysts using these supports via different methods; 3) the spectroscopic study of promoted and unpromoted catalysts to acquire basic knowledge of great importance and wide applicability for catalysis science and technology. Upon returning to the United States, not only will new know-how on synthetic techniques be available at CAER, but the catalysts synthesized at UQ will be screened for their ability to convert lipid feeds stocks to fuel-like hydrocarbons.This award under the East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes program supports summer research by a U.S. graduate student and is jointly funded by NSF and the Australian Academy of Science.