Design of Nickel Supported on Water-Tolerant NbO Catalysts for the Hydrotreating of Lignin Streams Obtained from Lignin-First Biorefining.

In biomass conversion, NbO has attracted increasing attention as a catalyst support presenting water-tolerant Lewis acid sites. Herein, we address the design of Ni/NbO catalysts for hydrotreating of lignin to hydrocarbons. To optimize the balance between acidic and hydrogenating properties, the catalysts were first evaluated in the hydrotreating of diphenyl ether.