Renewable p-Xylene Production by Catalytic Conversion of Crude Bioglycerol (GTA-pX Process)

The studies report an efficient vapor-phase continuous-flow process that operates on a ZSM-5 micro-mesoporous composite catalyst system (facilitated by molecular-level interaction of tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) and Zn species) for the production of sustainable para-xylene (p-X)-enriched alkyl-aromatics from crude bioglycerol. The process achieved 100% conversion of glycerol by coprocessing with methanol to produce industrially important liquid stock possessing similar to 85% alkyl-aromatics, especially xylene isomers, which is the highest ever reported to the best of our knowledge. The xylene isomers consisting of similar to 57% p-X are attractive for renewable petrochemical and polymer (poly(ethylene terephthalate)) production applications. The liquid stock consisting of xylene-rich alkyl-aromatics with minimum benzene content and possessing a high octane rating (research octane rating (RON) = 104) also has potential for gasoline blending applications.

Automated summary

The studies present an efficient vapor-phase continuous-flow process for the production of sustainable para-xylene (p-X)-enriched alkyl-aromatics from crude bioglycerol utilizing a ZSM-5 micro-mesoporous composite catalyst system. This process achieves 100% conversion of glycerol and produces liquid stock containing approximately 85% alkyl-aromatics, notably xylene isomers with around 57% p-X content, which is the highest reported thus far. The resulting liquid stock has potential applications in renewable petrochemicals, polymer production, and gasoline blending due to its low benzene content, high octane rating, and xylene-rich composition.