Oleic acid gasification over supported metal catalysts in supercritical water: Hydrogen production and product distribution

Oleic acid was examined as a model compound for lipids, which was gasified in supercritical water (SCW) using a batch reactor from 400 to 500 °C at 28 MPa. The influence of operating temperature and several commercial catalysts on the gasification efficiency, hydrogen gas yield, and residual liquid product quality was examined and discussed. The main gaseous components measured were carbon dioxide (CO2), hydrogen (H2), methane (CH4), and traces of carbon monoxide (CO). The residual liquid after reaction was characterized by analyzing the chemical oxygen demand (COD), total organic carbon (TOC), volatile fatty acids (VFAs), and the long chain fatty acids (LCFAs), namely, palmitic, myristic, stearic, linoleic, and oleic acids. The results showed that an increase of temperature coupled with the use of catalyst enhanced the gas yield dramatically. The H2 yield was 15 mol/mol oleic acid converted using both the pelletized Ru/Al2O3 and powder Ni/Silica–alumina catalysts which gave 4 times higher than the equilibrium yield. The COD reduction efficiency ranged from 31% at 400 °C without catalyst to 96 % at 500 °C in the presence of Ni/Silica–alumina catalyst. The composition of residual liquid products was studied using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC–MS), with a generalized reaction pathway for oleic acid decomposition in SCW reported.