Environmental friendly lubricants through selective hydrogenation of rapeseed oil over supported copper catalysts

Different supported copper catalysts are compared in the selective hydrogenation of vegetable oils and their methylesters. The influence of parameters such as the catalysts preparation method, the support used and the activation treatment are critically evaluated in terms of catalytic activity and selectivity. All ex situ reduced catalysts prepared by the chemisorption-hydrolysis (CH) method show better performances than the ones prepared by incipient wetness technique. These data are directly matched up to the different morphology of the supported copper particles obtained with these two methods. By using a 8% Cu/SiO2 catalyst the trienic component C18:3 can be eliminated and the dienic one lowered from 22 to 3-5% without increasing the stearic C18:0 content and limiting the cis/trans-isomerisation process. These oils, with a C18:1 content up to 88% show remarkable oxidation stability and keep fluid down to -15degreesC. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.