Upgrading Biodiesel from Vegetable Oils by Hydrogen Transfer to its Fatty Esters.

ABSTRACT: Conversion of vegetable-derived triglycerides to fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs) is a popular approach to the generation of biodiesel fuels and the basis of a growing industry. Drawbacks of the strategy are that (a) the glycerol backbone of the triglyceride is discarded as waste, and (2) most available natural triglycerides in the U.S. are multi-unsaturated or fully saturated, giving inferior fuel performance and causing engine problems. Here we show that catalysis by iridium complex 1 can address both of these problems through selective reduction of triglycerides high in polyunsaturation. This is realized using hydrogen from methanol or those imbedded in the triglyceride backbone, concurrently generating lactate as a value-added C3 product. Additional methanol or glycerol as a hyd

SUBMITTER: Lu Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6178228 | biostudies-literature | 2018 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature