Hydrogenation of Alkali Lignin Catalyzed by Pd/C

Hydrogenation of alkali lignin was carried out in the presence of Pd/C catalyst at hydrogen pressure 1∼5 MPa. Catalytic activity of Pd/C catalyst was investigated according to the structure changes of alkali lignin, which were characterized by UV and 1H-NMR spectroscopy. The measurement of average molecular weight undertook by gel permeation chromatography (GPC). Changes on function groups of alkali lignin were analyzed through chemical methods. Results show that total hydroxyl, phenolic hydroxyl and alcoholic hydroxyl increase 64.23%, 37.10% and 89.67%, respectively, while carbonyl and carboxyl decrease separately 43.50% and 53.41%. No significant differences of the total acidic groups and the phenyl structure were found after reaction. GPC analysis shows the weight average molecular weight (Mw) and number average molecular weight (Mn) are both decreased, and the polydispersity of alkali lignin is increased The active function groups of alkali lignin are increased obviously, and reactive activity of alkali lignin is enhanced as a result. The present results demonstrate Pd/C catalyst shows an excellent catalytic activity on reductive reaction of alkali lignin and hydrogen.