Renewable fuel gases and important organic compounds production from ethanol dehydrogenation using nickel oxide, a green-synthesized catalyst

Abstract Bioethanol dehydrogenation is a promising route for clean and renewable hydrogen production, aligning with low-carbon economy goals. Additionally, it promotes the synthesis of valuable organic compounds from bioethanol. This study investigated the use of green-synthesized NiO nanoparticles as a catalyst for ethanol dehydrogenation. The highest selectivity for hydrogen production (97.4%) was achieved using 10% NiO at 260 °C. However, at 10% NiO and 280 °C, the fuel gas mixture yielded a higher calculated calorific value (1,231.6 kJ). This condition was used to evaluate the reaction’s kinetic over a period of 1 to 8 reaction-hours. During these experiments, a progressive increase in gas volume was observed, along with a transition in the gas products from propane to hydrogen, followed by methane. These changes correlated with ethanol conversion to organic compounds (1,1-diethoxyethane and 1-butanol) in the liquid phase, as well as catalyst’s crystal structure alterations, from Ni 2+ face-centered-cubic (FCC) to metallic nickel FCC and hexagonal close-packed (HCP) phase.