Superhydrophilic mesoporous sulfonated melamine–formaldehyde resin supported palladium nanoparticles as an efficient catalyst for biofuel upgrade

Abstract

Mesoporous sulfonated melamine–formaldehyde resin (MSMF) has been successfully synthesized from the self-assembly of a copolymer surfactant (F127) with a mixture of melamine, formaldehyde and NaHSO₃ in an aqueous solution. After removal of the copolymer surfactant (F127) by ethanol extraction, the MSMF exhibits uniform mesopore sizes centered at 10.2 nm. The contact angle (0°) of water on the sample shows that the MSMF is superhydrophilic. After impregnating with a Pd species, a MSMF supported Pd catalyst (Pd/MSMF) is obtained, which shows high activity and excellent recyclability in an important model reaction for biofuel upgrade (hydrodeoxygenation of vanillin), compared with a conventional carbon supported Pd catalyst (Pd/C). The superior catalytic properties of the Pd/MSMF catalyst should be potentially important for biofuel upgrades in the future.