The present invention addresses to a hydrothermal liquefaction process capable of generating a liquid stream, rich in renewable molecules, with lower oxygen content, lower percentage of water and lower acidity compared to other products of thermochemical processes of biomass conversion. In order to effectively carry out this process, a catalyst was developed, obtained from the calcination of castor bean hull, to be used in the field of biofuels in order to provide an environmentally friendly alternative for the production of fuels.

The present invention describes a process for treating a feedstock obtained from a renewable source, comprising a step a) of hydrotreating said feedstock, a step b) of separation into at least a light fraction and at least a hydrocarbon liquid effluent, a step c) of removing at least a portion of the water from the hydrocarbon liquid effluent, a step d) of hydroconversion of at least a portion of the hydrocarbon liquid effluent, said hydroconversion step d) being characterized firstly by the use of a bifunctional catalyst comprising a molybdenum and/or tungsten sulfide phase promoted with nickel and/or cobalt and secondly by a ratio between the partial pressure of hydrogen sulfide and of hydrogen at the inlet of the hydroconversion unit of 10 less than 5?10.sup.?5 and a step e) of fractionation of the effluent obtained from step d) to obtain at least a middle distillate fraction.

A process for the production of a higher hydrocarbon useful as gasoline component from solid biomass is provided. The process provides for longer ZSM-5 condensation catalyst life by contacting the stable oxygenated hydrocarbon intermediate containing diols produced from digestion and hydrodoxygenation of the solid biomass to an amorphous silica alumina catalyst to reduce the diols content, and optionally removing water, prior to contacting with the ZSM-5 condensation catalyst.

According to one or more embodiments, a mesoporous zeolite may included a microporous framework that includes a plurality of micropores having diameters of less than or equal to 2 nm, and a plurality of mesopores having diameters of greater than 2 nm and less than or equal to 50 nm. The mesoporous zeolite may included an aluminosilicate material, a titanosilicate material, or a pure silicate material. The mesoporous zeolite may included a surface area of greater than 350 m.sup.2/g and a pore volume of greater than 0.3 cm.sup.3/g.

According to one or more embodiments, cationic polymers may be produced which include one or more monomers containing cations. Such cationic polymers may be utilized as structure directing agents to form mesoporous zeolites. The mesoporous zeolites may include micropores as well as mesopores, and may have a surface area of greater than 350 m.sup.2/g and a pore volume of greater than 0.3 cm.sup.3/g. Also described are core/shell zeolites, where at least the shell portion includes a mesoporous zeolite material.

An improved process for the production of a higher hydrocarbon from solid biomass is provided. Solid biomass that has been digested and hydrodeoxygenated in a liquid digestive solvent in the presence of a hydrothermal hydrocatalytic catalyst is separated to an organic rich phase and an aqueous rich phase containing diols. At least a portion of the aqueous rich phase is contacted with an acidic amorphous silica alumina catalyst producing monooxygenate-containing stream comprising water, organic monooxygenates, and unsaturated aliphatic hydrocarbons. At least a portion of the monooxygenate-containing stream is contacted with a solid acid condensation catalyst to produce a higher hydrocarbons stream. At least a portion of the organic rich phase is also contacted with a solid acid condensation catalyst to produce a higher hydrocarbons stream.

A method for converting an alcohol to hydrocarbons comprises two serially placed catalysts. The fraction of aromatics is reduced to desired levels. The method comprises: a) contacting the alcohol with a first catalyst on a carrier, said carrier is selected from a mixed oxide and a mesoporous carrier, said first catalyst comprises at least one basic oxide and optionally at least one selected from the group consisting of metals and metal oxides, then b) contacting the resulting mixture from step a) with a second catalyst wherein said second catalyst is an etched metal loaded zeolite catalyst wherein the etched metal loaded zeolite catalyst is manufactured with a method comprising etching with subsequent loading of metal onto the catalyst, wherein the metal is in the form of nanoparticles, and wherein at least two different metals are loaded onto the etched zeolite catalyst. The hydrocarbons are recovered and used for instance for fuel including gasoline, kerosene, diesel, and jet propellant, and jet fuel. Naturally, other uses of hydrocarbons should not be excluded.

Processes for producing a linear internal olefin product include the steps of contacting an olefin feed containing C.sub.10-C.sub.20 vinylidenes and a C.sub.10-C.sub.20 normal alpha olefin and/or C.sub.10-C.sub.20 linear internal olefins, a first acid catalyst, and a C.sub.1 to C.sub.18 carboxylic acid to form a first reaction product containing linear internal olefins, trisubstituted olefins, and secondary esters, then removing all or a portion of the secondary esters from the first reaction product, followed by contacting the secondary esters and a second acid catalyst to form a second reaction product comprising linear internal olefins, and then removing all or a portion of the linear internal olefins from the second reaction product to form the linear internal olefin product. Linear alkanes subsequently can be produced by hydrogenating the linear internal olefin product to form a linear alkane product.

A process for the production of a higher hydrocarbon useful to produce diesel components from solid biomass is provided. The process provides for improved production of diesel components by contacting the stable oxygenated hydrocarbon intermediate containing diols produced from digestion and hydrodoxygenation of the solid biomass to an amorphous silica alumina catalyst to reduce the diols content, and removing water prior to contacting with the condensation catalyst to produce the higher hydrocarbon.

Embodiments of the invention include apparatus and systems for hydrocarbon synthesis and methods regarding the same. In an embodiment, the invention includes a method for creating a hydrocarbon product stream comprising reacting a reaction mixture in the presence of a catalyst inside of a reaction vessel to form a product mixture, the reaction mixture comprising a carbon source and water. The temperature inside the reaction vessel can be between 450 degrees Celsius and 600 degrees Celsius and the pressure inside the reaction vessel can be above supercritical pressure for water. In an embodiment, the invention includes an extrusion reactor system for creating a hydrocarbon product stream. The temperature inside the extrusion reactor housing between 450 degrees Celsius and 600 degrees Celsius. Pressure inside the reaction vessel can be above supercritical pressure for water. Other embodiments are also included herein.