Effect of water on the conversions of 2-methoxyphenol and phenol as bio-oil model compounds over ReS2/SiO2 catalyst

• The guaiacol and phenol conversions were affected by the presence of water.
• The water content affected the selectivity on the guaiacol and phenol conversions.
• Water generates loss of Re dispersion and DME pathway inhibition for guaiacol.
• Water generates only loss of Re dispersion for phenol conversion.

The effect of water content on the conversion of guaiacol and phenol over ReS2/SiO2 catalyst at 250 °C and 5 MPa of pressure was studied. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results showed loss of Re dispersion for the catalysts used in the reaction with over 0.5 mL of water content. The decrease in activity in phenol conversion was related to the changes in Re dispersion as a consequence of the effect of water addition. Meanwhile, the decrease in guaiacol conversion was related to loss of Re dispersion together with the inhibition of demethylation pathway.

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