Endogenous calcium enriched hydrochar catalyst derived from water hyacinth for glucose isomerization

Water hyacinth is a major aquatic plant in ecological restoration which propagates rapidly, whereas its biomass waste lacks value-added utilization routes. To address this problem, we put forth an innovative two-step carbon-ization strategy to convert water hyacinth to catalyst for isomerization of glucose to fructose. Through combining the hydrothermal carbonization and pyrolysis, catalyst morphology including its carbon substrate and calcium salts was successfully engineered. The prepared hydrochar-based catalyst presented an outstanding catalytic per-formance, the optimal of which could obtain 31% fructose yield with 89% selectivity at 120 degrees C for 45 min in water and maintain the reactivity for at least three runs. The catalytic reactivity was derived from the crystallization of endogenous alkaline earth calcium in water hyacinth, which was comparable to catalysts doped with expensive metals. Besides, the equipment and energy requirements for preparation were quite low-demanding (calcined only at 400 degrees C for 1 h). This study not only pioneers a sustainable way to upcycle aquatic biomass, but also invents a low-cost and efficient catalyst for biorefinery through the production of engineered carbon. (c) 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

By employing an innovative two-step carbonization strategy, water hyacinth was converted into a catalyst for efficient isomerization of glucose to fructose, demonstrating outstanding catalytic performance and long-lasting reactivity.