Synthesis of carbon-encapsulated iron nanoparticles from wood derived sugars by hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) and their application to convert bio-syngas into liquid hydrocarbons

Carbon-encapsulated iron nanoparticles (CEIN)were prepared from a solution of Iron(II) chloride (FeCl2) and wood derived sugars under hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) conditions. The obtained nanostructures were characterized by SEM, TEM, HRTEM, XRD, TPD, Raman, and FTIR. The size of these nano-spheres was approximately 100-150 nm in diameter with an iron core diameter of 10-25 nm. The carbon-encapsulated iron nanoparticles were used as catalysts to thermochemically convert wood derived syngas into liquid hydrocarbons. These nanoparticles showed excellent catalytic performance when used as catalysts for the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) process, and these nanoparticles showed high selectivity towards creating C5+ hydrocarbons. While undergoing reactions with biomass derived syngas at 290 °C, the CO conversion rate from this catalyst was found to be 89.5% and hydrocarbon selectivity was discovered to be 65%.