Flexibilization of Biorefineries: Tuning Lignin Hydrogenation by Hydrogen Partial Pressure

The present study describes an interesting and practical catalytic system that allows flexible conversion of lignin into aromatic or aliphatic hydrocarbons, depending on the hydrogen partial pressure. A combination of experiment and theory shows that the product distribution between aromatics and aliphatics can be simply tuned by controlling the availability of hydrogen on the catalyst surface. Noticeably, these pathways lead to almost complete oxygen removal from lignin biomass, yielding high-quality hydrocarbons. Thus, hydrogen-lignin co-refining by using this catalytic system provides high flexibility in hydrogen storage/consumption towards meeting different regional and temporal demands.

Automated summary

This study presents a catalytic system that can convert lignin into high-quality hydrocarbons by controlling hydrogen partial pressure, providing flexibility in hydrogen storage/consumption to meet different regional and temporal demands. The product distribution between aromatics and aliphatics can be tuned by controlling hydrogen availability on the catalyst surface, leading to almost complete oxygen removal from lignin biomass.