Strengthening the Connection between Science, Society and Environment to Develop Future French and European Bioeconomies: Cutting-Edge Research of VAALBIO Team at UCCS.

The development of the future French and European bioeconomies will involve developing new green chemical processes in which catalytic transformations are key. The VAALBIO team (valorization of alkanes and biomass) of the UCCS laboratory (Unité de Catalyse et Chimie du Solide) are working on various catalytic processes, either developing new catalysts and/or designing the whole catalytic processes. Our research is focused on both the fundamental and applied aspects of the processes.

Lactic Acid Conversion to Acrylic Acid Over Fluoride-Substituted Hydroxyapatites.

One of the most interesting intermediates for the chemical industry is acrylic acid, which can be derived from lactic acid by catalytic dehydration in the gas phase. The realization of this reaction is complex due to a strong thermal activation leading to the formation of undesired by-products (acetaldehyde, propanoic acid…) as well as polymerization. We studied this reaction over hydroxyapatites modified by substitution of the hydroxyl groups by fluoride.

Catalytic Dehydration of Glycerol to Acrolein in a Two-Zone Fluidized Bed Reactor.

The gas-phase catalytic dehydration of glycerol to acrolein was carried out in a Two-Zone Fluidized-Bed Reactor (TZFBR) using a 20 wt. % phosphotungstic acid (HPWO) catalyst supported on CARIACT-Q10 commercial silica. In the first step, a hydrodynamic study of the reactor was performed.

Extending Catalyst Life in Glycerol-to-Acrolein Conversion Using Non-thermal Plasma.

Booming biodiesel production worldwide demands valorization of its byproduct of glycerol. Acrolein, an important intermediate chemical, can be produced by gas-phase glycerol dehydration catalyzed by solid acids. Because catalysts that lead to high acrolein selectivity usually deactivate rapidly due to the formation of coke that blocks the active sites on their surface, one major challenge of this method is how to extend the service life of the catalyst.

Regeneration of silica-supported silicotungstic acid as a catalyst for the dehydration of glycerol.

The dehydration reaction of glycerol to acrolein is catalyzed by acid catalysts. These catalysts tend to suffer from the formation of carbonaceous species on their surface (coking), which leads to substantial degradation of their performances (deactivation). To regenerate the as-deactivated catalysts, various techniques have been proposed so far, such as the co-feeding of oxygen, continuous regeneration by using a moving catalytic bed, or alternating between reaction and regeneration.

Towards the sustainable production of acrolein by glycerol dehydration.

The massive increase in biodiesel production by transesterification of vegatable oils goes hand-in-hand with the availability of a large volume of glycerol, which must be valorized. Glycerol dehydration to acrolein over acid catalysts is one of the most promising ways of valorization, because this compound is an important chemical intermediate used in, for example, the DL-methionine synthesis. In this Minireview, we give a detailed critical view of the state-of-the-art of this dehydration reaction.