US 12275003 B1Patent grantUnited States

Carbon-Supported Catalyst for Alcohol Conversion

Official patent title

Carbon-supported copper manganite nanoparticles for biofuel production

Arabic title: جسيمات نانوية من منغنيت النحاس مدعومة بالكربون لإنتاج الوقود الحيوي

Invention

Problem

Conventional methyl ethyl ketone production can have low yields and generate pollutants. A defined heterogeneous nanocatalyst is needed to convert butan-2-ol to methyl ethyl ketone under practical gas-phase conditions.

Why it matters

Methyl ethyl ketone is described as a prospective high-octane biofuel and is also used as an industrial solvent and chemical intermediate. A more efficient catalytic route could support renewable feedstock conversion and chemical manufacturing.

Approach

The process forms a copper-manganese metal-organic-framework precursor hydrothermally, then calcines it to yield carbon-supported CuMn2O4 nanoparticles, including particles with carbon-coated spinel cores. The catalyst dehydrogenates gaseous butan-2-ol to methyl ethyl ketone at 200–400 °C in an inert carrier gas.

Who may benefit

Potential beneficiaries include catalyst manufacturers, biofuel and biorefinery developers, methyl ethyl ketone producers, process-chemistry groups, and researchers working on mixed-metal-oxide catalysis.

Potential value

A metal-organic-framework-derived route supplies a mixed-valence CuMn2O4 spinel with partial carbon encapsulation and defines both catalyst-manufacturing conditions and its use for gas-phase alcohol dehydrogenation.

Background

Growing energy demand and the limitations of fossil fuels motivate renewable fuel and chemical routes. Methyl ethyl ketone can serve as a high-octane fuel component and has established solvent and processing uses, but conventional manufacture is described as suffering from low yield and pollutant generation. Mixed copper-manganese oxides offer redox-active catalytic sites, while a carbon shell can alter particle surfaces and stability. The disclosure therefore develops a controlled nanostructured catalyst for converting butan-2-ol into methyl ethyl ketone.

Technology overview

Copper and manganese salts at an approximately equimolar ratio are dissolved in polar solvent and combined with an aromatic dicarboxylic-acid ligand, preferably terephthalic acid. Hydrothermal treatment at 100–200 °C forms a solid framework precursor, which is calcined at 350–600 °C. The resulting CuMn2O4 has a crystalline spinel lattice with Cu+/Cu2+ and Mn3+/Mn4+ states, and some particles have carbon-shell/core morphology. Gas-phase butan-2-ol is then dehydrogenated over the material, preferably under nitrogen.

Potential applications

Catalytic production of methyl ethyl ketone from butan-2-ol.
Biofuel and renewable-chemical process research.
Gas-phase alcohol dehydrogenation catalyst development.
Mixed-metal-oxide and carbon-supported catalyst platforms.

Evidence-supported advantages

Uses a controlled hydrothermal framework precursor followed by calcination.
Produces crystalline spinel CuMn2O4 containing multiple copper and manganese oxidation states.
Provides partial carbon encapsulation around catalyst nanoparticles.
Defines catalyst use across a 200–400 °C butan-2-ol dehydrogenation range.

Development stage

Nanoparticle synthesis, structural characterization, and laboratory catalytic comparisons are described; continuous processing, catalyst lifetime, regeneration, and production-scale operation were not established. The development stage was not independently verified.

Commercial opportunity

The catalyst may support licensing or co-development with specialty-catalyst, biofuel, and ketone-production companies. Commercialization would require yield and selectivity benchmarks, long-duration stability, regeneration data, carbon balance, solvent recovery, continuous-reactor scale-up, and process-economic comparison with established methyl ethyl ketone routes at production scale.

Patent classifications

WIPO IPC

B01J23/84Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J35/30Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus

CPC

B01J23/84Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J35/397Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J35/45Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J35/70Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J37/04Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J37/086Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
C07C45/002Acyclic or carbocyclic compounds
C07C49/10Acyclic or carbocyclic compounds
B01J21/18Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus

Inventors

First inventorMohamed Nady Abd El-Hameed Ibrahim
InventorAbd El-Aziz Ahmed Said

Keywords

copper manganite
CuMn2O4
carbon-supported catalyst
methyl ethyl ketone
butan-2-ol
dehydrogenation
metal-organic framework
biofuel

Patent document and drawings

The patent publication is mapped to this record. Patent drawings remain within that publication; no separately cleared public media package has been supplied.