Cette thèse s’inscrit dans un projet Européen TOPCOMBI de 22 partenaires. Plus spécifiquement, ce travail estle résultat d’une collaboration entre ENI (Italie), ITQ (Espagne), Repsol (Espagne) et IRCELYON (France).Ce travail est composé de 2 thématiques différentes dont les améliorations peuvent s’obtenir en trouvant denouveaux matériaux adaptés aux besoins.Les demandes énergétiques mondiales sont et seront en constante hausse ces prochaines années. Dans l’optiquede pallier à ce besoin, de nouvelles ressources doivent être trouvées et d’autres optimisées. Les énergies fossiles fontparties des ressources les plus utilisées dans le monde. Parmi c’est 3, le gaz naturel semble être le plus prometteur dupoint de vu du rendement énergétiques ou de l’impact écologique. Cependant, de nombreux champs de gaz ne peuventpas être traités car trop petit ou trop contaminés pour être économiquement viable. L’un des moyens pour les rendreattractifs est d’abaisser le coût de purification en utilisant de nouvelles techniques de séparation comme le système PSA.Cependant, il n’existe pas à l’heure actuelle d’adsorbant efficace pour permettre une purification économique viable.De nos jours, les réactions d’alkylation représentent un intérêt économique très important. Les procédésindustriels sont généralement effectués par des réactions acides homogènes ou non. A la vue des nouvelles restrictionsécologiques, certains procédés de catalyse homogène doivent être remplacés par des réactions catalytiques hétérogènespossédant les mêmes rendements. Pour ce faire, de nouveaux matériaux à caractères acide ont été utilisés : les zéolithes.En revanche la faible taille de pores de ces composés empêche les réactions d’alkylation sélective de molécules tropgrosse comme les composés poly-aromatiques.Depuis une vingtaine d’année, de nouveaux composés cristallins microporeux ont vu le jour. Les MOFs, MetalOrganic Frameworks. Ces composés ont la particularité d’être obtenus avec différents cations métalliques et ligandsorganiques. Ces combinaisons donnent une très grande diversité de ces composés au niveau des réactivités, du volumeporeux et de la taille des pores. Dans ce travail, nous avons essayé d’obtenir différents matériaux avec descaractéristiques précises afin de pouvoir les utiliser dans des procédés de purification du méthane ou dans la catalyseacide. Pour ce faire, nous avons mis en place un protocole de synthèses de MOFs à haut débit ainsi que d’un protocolede caractérisation adapté à nos besoins. Les différents composés remplissant les différents critères étant testés dans lesréactions adéquates. / This thesis is a European project TOPCOMBI of 22 partners. More specifically, this work is the result ofcollaboration between ENI (Italy), ITQ (Spain), Repsol (Spain) and IRCELYON (France).This work consists of 2 different themes which improvements can be obtained by finding new materials tailoredto the needs.The global energy demands are and will be constantly rising in the coming years. In order to meet this need,new resources must be found and further optimized. Fossil fuels are among the most used resources in the world. Amongthis 3, natural gas appears to be the most promising point of view of energy efficiency and ecological impact. However,many gas fields cannot be treated because there are too small or too contaminated to be economically viable. One way tomake them attractive is to lower the cost of purification using novel separation techniques such as the PSA system.However, there is no currently effective adsorbent to allow a viable economic cleansing.Today, the alkylation reactions represent a very important economic interest. Industrial processes are typicallycarried out by homogeneous acid reactions or not. Seeing the new environmental restrictions, some homogeneouscatalytic processes must be replaced by heterogeneous catalytic reactions with the same yields. To do this, new materialsto acid characters were used: the zeolites. However the small size of pores of these compounds prevents selectivealkylation reactions of molecules too large compounds such as poly-aromatic.For twenty years, new microporous crystalline compounds have emerged. The MOFs, Metal OrganicFrameworks. These compounds have the characteristic to be obtained with different metal cations and organic ligands.These combinations give a wide variety of these compounds at the level of reactivity, pore volume and pore size. In thiswork, we tried to get different materials with specific characteristics in order to use them in methods for purification ofmethane in acid catalysis. To do this, we have established a protocol for the synthesis of MOFs with high speed and acharacterization protocol suited to our needs. The different compounds fulfilling the various criteria being tested in theappropriate responses.

Thesis advisor: Chia-Kuang Tsung / Thesis advisor: Eranthie Weerapana / Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) are crystalline porous materials constructed of metal ions and organic linkers, and have been widely utilized in gas storage, sensing, and chromatographic separation. The combination of MOF nanoparticles with other materials will broaden the utilization of MOF materials to a great extent. Several approaches for creating composites with the MOF, Zeolitic Imidazolate Framework-8 (ZIF-8), have been developed: dye and model drug molecules were encapsulated in ZIF-8 pores for potential drug delivery; mesoporous silica monolayer was epitaxially grown on the ZIF-8 surface for structural stability enhancement and hollow structure formation; UiO-66, another MOF subclass, was hierarchically encased inside ZIF-8 for double-phase gas separation and heterogeneous catalysis. By exploring the versatile ZIF-8 platform, these nanocomposites could have great applications in fields such as heterogeneous catalysis and drug delivery. / Thesis (MS) — Boston College, 2015. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Chemistry.

L’objectif de la thèse était la préparation et la caractérisation des catalyseurs hétérogènes à base de polyoxométalates. L’étude mécanistique d’oxydation du méthane jusqu’au méthanol a montré que sur des polyoxométalates supportés sur la silice l’activation C-H a lieu déjà à la température ambiante. L’adsorption du méthane-13C sur H4SiMo12O40 supporté, suivie par RMN solide a mis en évidence la création de l’espèce méthoxy [SiMo12O40(CH3)]3-. Le cycle catalytique est complété par l’hydrolyse de cette espèce - méthanol est formé et une molécule de l’eau recrée la structure du départ de polyoxométalate. L’adsorption du méthanol-13C sur des polyoxométalates a montré la création de deux types des espèces methoxy, localisées sur des atomes d’oxygènes terminaux ou pontants est caractérisées par deux signaux RMN distincts – à 58 et 77 ppm, respectivement. En greffant un complexe de platine PtMe2COD sur les sels de césium de polyoxometalates, le dégagement du méthane ou de la mélange du méthane et de l’éthane a été observé et expliqué par la séquence de l’addition oxydative du proton de polyoxometalate au centre métallique, couplage C-H ou C-C et finalement l’élimination réductrice et libération d’une molécule de gaz. Sels d’ammonium de l’acide phosphotungstique H3PW12O40 ont été montrées de catalyser l’isomérisation du n-butane a l’isobutane dans des conditions douces (225°C, 1 atm.). Composé du cuivre Cu(OTf)2 sur la surface des sels inorganiques des polyoxometalates donne des catalyseurs très actifs en insertion des carbènes aux liaisons C-H des éthers cycliques. / The aim of this work was preparation and characterization of catalysts based on polyoxometalates and their use in various catalytic reactions in heterogenous conditions. Methane C-H activation on silica-supported polyoxometalates was shown already at room temperature. Methoxy species [SiMo12O40(CH3)]3- from the 13C-enriched methane adsorption at 200°C on the surface of a silicadispersed silicomolybdic acid was detected by means of 13C SS NMR. Its hydrolysis led to methanol formation, thus completing the catalytic cycle. After 13C-enriched MeOH adsorption presence of two distinct methoxy species on the surface of polyoxometalates was shown, located on terminal (single coordinated) and bridging (double coordinated) oxygen atoms and resulting in the resonances at 58 and 77 ppm in 13C SS NMR. Grafting of PtMe2COD on the surface of various polyoxometalate supports led to methane or combined methane and ethane release, explained by means of oxidative addition/reductive elimination mechanism on metal centers. Ammonium salts of phosphotungstic acid catalyzed efficiently n-butane to isobutane skeletal isomerisation at mild conditions (225 °C, atmospheric pressure). Successful heterogenization of copper catalysts, active in enantioselective C-H carbene insertion reactions, on polyoxometalate supports have been shown

To date, most lignocellulosic biorefinery strategies have focused on optimizing conversion of cellulose to ethanol, leaving lignin as an underutilized biomass constituent. Lignin is engineered by nature with the intent to protect plants from chemical and biological attack; this leaves lignin with high structural irregularity and recalcitrance, rendering conversion of the lignin macromolecule to valuable products particularly challenging. Nevertheless, given that the economics of cellulosic ethanol production are strongly dependent on the value that can be obtained for the lignin co-product, the successful valorization of lignin is a crucial step in the transition towards a bio-based economy. This thesis focuses on lignin depolymerization using oxidative methods, specifically, the oxidation and cleavage of the β-O-4 linkage. Heterogeneous catalysis in this case is more desirable than homogenous catalysis as the catalyst easily recovered, and it is better suited for industrial applications. Initially, layered double hydroxide (LDH) supported gold nanoparticles were characterized and screened in the oxidation of various lignin model compounds using molecular oxygen, leading to the discovery of an Au/Li-Al LDH heterogeneous catalyst active for oxidative cleavage of the β-O-4 linkage. The Au/Li-Al LDH catalyst was then applied to oxidatively depolymerize Indulin AT kraft lignin and γ-valerolactone (GVL) extracted lignin, high yields of monomers being observed when the oxidized lignins underwent subsequent base-catalyzed hydrolysis. Thereafter, different literature oxidative lignin depolymerization methods were tested on kraft lignin and GVL lignin, and the results compared to the Au/Li-Al LDH catalyst (coupled with hydrolysis) system to determine the most effective oxidative depolymerization method.

Ion exchange resins, commonly used in water treatment, demonstrate promise for the production of biodiesel from biomass feedstocks. The goal of this presented PhD research is to investigate novel uses of ion exchange resins for processing biodiesel feedstocks. Specifically, this research explored using ion exchange resins to remove free fatty acids (FFA) from soybean and waste cooking oils, catalyze transesterification of soybean oil, and catalyze in-situ conversion of dried algal biomass to biodiesel and other recoverable organics. The effect of temperature, moisture content, mixing rate, and resin drying on deacidification of soybean oil with 5% oleic acid feedstock was explored using Dowex Monosphere MR-450 UPW within a batch reactor. The resins were observed to remove up to 83 +/- 1.3% of FFA from soybean oil with less than 5% moisture content while operated at a 20% resin loading at 50 degrees C while mixing at 550 rpm. Once operation characteristics impacting deacidification were evaluated, a series of experiments were carried out to demonstrate the use of mixed bed resin to remove FFA from waste cooking oils. An investigation of wash solutions capable of regenerating the resins was also carried out. Using methanol to regenerate the resins resulted in more than 40% FFA removal over three regeneration cycles, highlighting the utility of resin regeneration as a cost saving measure. Transesterification of soybean oil on Amberlyst A26-OH, a basic ion exchange resin, in the presence of excess methanol was carried out to determine the mechanism of the reaction occurring on the surface. A batch reactor approach was used and reactions were carried out with and without FFA present in the soybean oil feed stock at a 20% resin loading at 50 degrees C while mixing at 550 rpm. When FFA was present in the feedstock and methanol is present in excess, the rate constant for methanol consumption increased. Based upon model fitting, the rate constant of methanol consumption was determined to be 2.08 x 10^-7 /sec with FFA absent and 5.39 x 10^-4/sec when FFA is present when the Eley-Rideal model was used to fit the data. In-situ conversion of dried algal biomass to biodiesel and other recoverable organics was investigated using a batch reaction system with 1 gram of algae. The system was operated with 40:60 methanol:hexane as the solvent system operated at 50 degrees C while mixing at 550 rpm over a range of catalyst loadings. The highest observed ester yield, approximately 60% yield (37 mg_ester/g_algae), was observed when air dried algae was reacted with a 20% resin. An evaluation of the reaction products showed a mixture of esters, phytol, alcohols, and ketones; highlighting the complexity of the reactions occurring during in-situ biomass conversion.

Cette thèse a pour objet de contribuer au développement du procédé de dépollution des eaux usées industrielles par ozonation catalytique hétérogène mettant en oeuvre un catalyseur poudre breveté, déposé sur des mousses de différents matériaux. Pour cela, une molécule modèle réfractaire, l'acide succinique a été ozonée en présence de catalyseur dans un réacteur lors d'expériences au cours desquelles plusieurs paramètres d'importance pour l'efficacité du procédé ont été modifiés (localisation du catalyseur, configuration du réacteur, introduction d'ozone...).Dans un premier temps la cinétique réactionnelle a été déterminée en faisant varier les concentrations initiales en acide succinique et en catalyseur.Par la suite, l'influence de la localisation du catalyseur supporté au sein du système réactionnel et du mode d'introduction de l'ozone gaz a été étudiée.La variation du temps de séjour de la solution par variation d'une part du débit d'entrée et d'autre part du volume de solution dans le système a permis (i) la confirmation de la loi cinétique et (ii) la détermination d'un volume limite à partir duquel l'efficacité de la réaction est affectée.Les résultats obtenus ont aboutis à la proposition d'un mécanisme d'ozonation catalytique hétérogène en plusieurs étapes et à la définition de paramètres de dimensionnement en vue d'une application industrielle. / This study aims at developing an industrial wastewater treatment process based on heterogeneous catalytic ozonation implementing a patented powder catalyst stuck on stainless steel and ceramic foam. A refractory model compound, succinic acid, was chosen to be ozonated in the presence of the catalyst while different operating parameters were varied.Kinetic of the catalytic reaction was determined varying initial concentrations of succinic acid and catalyst.The influence of solid catalyst within the reaction system and of the way of introduction of ozone gas was also investigated.The variation of the solution Hydraulic Retention Time through (i) inlet flow rate variation and (ii) volume of solution in the reaction system variation, allowed the confirmation of the kinetic law and the determination of a threshold volume below which the reaction efficiency decreased.The results obtained allowed the proposition of heterogeneous catalytic ozonation mechanism comprising several steps and the definition of design parameters.

The fact that hydrogen is a clean and versatile fuel offers an attractive carbon-free source of energy and leverages the U.S. economy toward long-term sustainable economic growth. At an industrial scale, hydrogen production is mostly relying on methane steam reforming producing stoichiometric amounts of carbon oxides (CO and CO2), which imposes economic and environmental concerns. To mitigate the issue, we propose NH3 assisted anaerobic reforming of natural gas liquids (ethane and propane) as an alternative approach to produce COx free hydrogen. Here, in the first chapter, through comprehensive performance evaluation, characterization, and transient kinetic studies, it is shown that the atomically dispersed Re-oxo grafted into framework Al of the HZSM-5 zeolite are highly active and stable for the ammonia reforming of ethane and propane at temperatures comparable to steam reforming ≤ 650 °C. In the second chapter, an alternative non- noble Ni/Ga intermetallic compound (IMC) with various Ni to Ga ratios is synthesized through the solvothermal synthesis by forming the oxalate MOF precursor. The result indicates that while Ni-rich samples form pure Ni3Ga IMC with promising catalytic performance, the Ga rich catalyst consists of segregated phases of Ni/Ga IMC and Ga2O3 with ill-defined structure showing lower stability despite the high activity. In chapter 3, a bifunctional Ni/Ga supported ZSM-5 is successfully developed in ethane aromatization. Influence of metal function in early-stage and steady-state activity and stability as well as structure reactivity relation was investigated applying comprehensive characterization, performance test, deactivation modeling, and transient studies. The results suggest that a tandem reaction mechanism between Ni3Ga intermetallic compound, Ga cation, and Bronsted acid sites of zeolite is responsible for the superior performance of bimetallic catalysts compared to their monometallic counterpart. In the last chapter, applying transient kinetic technique, the mechanism of ethane aromatization over Pt and Zn supported ZSM-5 model catalysts was precisely explored. The results reveal that despite mechanistic differences between these catalysts, ethane amortization on both catalysts follows a hydrocarbon pool mechanism.

No description available.

Depuis la révolution industrielle, la chimie ne cesse de prospérer en développant des procédés de plus en plus performants souvent aux dépens de l’environnement. Dans le cadre du développement d’une chimie durable, des procédés catalytiques dans le domaine de la chimie d’oxydation sont mis en place en utilisant des métaux physiologiques et des oxydants doux. En combinant les avantages de la catalyse homogène et de la biocatalyse, de nouveaux catalyseurs bio-inspirés ont émergé, les métalloenzymes artificielles. Elles sont constituées d’un complexe inorganique, choisi en fonction de la réaction visée, qui est ancré au sein d’une protéine, qui apporte la sélectivité de la réaction. Au cours des travaux de cette thèse, de nouvelles métalloenzymes artificielles ont été créées par ancrage de divers complexes de Fe ou de Ru au sein de la protéine NikA. Dans un premier temps, l’hybride NikA/Ru-bpza a été synthétisé pour réaliser l’hydroxychloration d’alcènes en présence d’un iode hypervalent. Bien que d’excellentes propriétés catalytiques aient été obtenues, l’amélioration de la stabilité de ce type de catalyseurs, en particulier pour des réactions d’oxydation, reste un challenge important à relever pour leur utilisation au niveau industriel. Une des solutions originale est basée sur le développement de la catalyse hétérogène, en utilisant de cristaux de métalloenzymes artificielles grâce à la technologie CLEC (Cross-Linked Enzyme Crystals). Cette technologie permet, d’une part, d’améliorer la stabilité et la recyclabilité des catalyseurs, et d’autre part, d’élargir les conditions réactionnelles utilisées (solvants, pH, températures). Trois réactivités ont été développées à base de CLEC NikA/FeL : (i) la sulfoxydation de thioéthers, (ii) l’hydroxychloration d’alcènes en présence d’Oxone® et de chlore et (iii) la coupure oxydante d’alcènes par activation d’O2. Ces résultats ont permis d’explorer de nouvelles réactivités en chimie cascade soit en combinant les CLEC mis au point, soit en combinant différents catalyseurs homogènes. / Since the industrial revolution, chemistry has continually thriven by developing new efficient processes at the expense of the environment. As an example, oxidation reactions are performed under harsh conditions with the use of toxic oxidants. With the emergence of green chemistry, catalytic processes using physiological metals and soft oxidants are privileged. Combining the advantages of biocatalysis and homogeneous catalysis, the design of novel bioinspired catalysts, consisting on the synthesis of artificial enzymes has recently emerged. These hybrids are composed of an inorganic complex, driving the reactivity of the enzyme, inserted into a protein, which drives the reaction selectivity. The thesis described new developments in original artificial metalloenzymes, based on the use of the NikA protein and Fe or Ru catalysts. First, a new hybrid has been developed by anchoring the Ru-bpza complex to NikA to catalyze alkene hydroxychloration with hypervalent iodine. Although excellent catalytic efficiencies were obtained, the stability improvement remains a major challenge for the industrial use of these catalytic processes, especially when oxidation chemistry is concerned. One possible strategy is based on the development of heterogeneous catalysis, by using a crystal/solution version of the artificial metalloenzymes thank to the cross-linked enzyme crystals (CLEC) technology. On the one hand, this technology allows to increase the stability and the recyclability of the catalysts. On the other hand, catalysis can be performed under a various reactions conditions (organic solvent, temperature, pH). Three reactivities have been developed with NikA/FeL-CLEC catalysts: (i) thioether sulfoxidation with NaOCl, (ii) alkene hydroxychloration with Oxone® and chloride source and (iii) oxidative cleavage of alkenes by O2 activation. To go further, new reactivities in cascade reactions have been explored combining either NikA-based CLEC developed, or different homogenous catalysts.

Chemical warfare agents are a toxic class of compounds that are incredibly harmful to human health. Methods of detoxification and decontamination currently exist, however they all suffer from problems that involve logistical transport or involve technologies that directly address liquid threats instead of vapors. One promising method of detoxification involves the oxidation of these compounds into less-harmful species. The relatively large chemical size and complexity of modern-day chemical warfare agents, however, precludes a straightforward analysis of the chemical transformations that take place on novel decontaminating materials. Additionally, a fundamental understanding of reaction mechanisms that occur on novel material surfaces is required before improved materials can be developed. To this end, the oxidation of three simpler, smaller organic molecules were studied over a variety of materials in order to build up a chemical understanding of the systems under study. The photoepoxidation of propene into propene oxide was observed to readily occur over an in-house developed dual titania-silica catalyst created by atomic layer deposition. The subsequent photoinduced degradation of produced propene oxide was observed to occur over the novel catalyst. Next, the oxidation of CO was studied over a Pt/TiO2 catalyst while in the presence of humidity. The addition of water was shown to enable an alternative, low energy pathway that closely followed the water gas shift, but ended upon the production of stable surface-bound formates. Gaseous oxygen was found to subsequently oxidize these surface formates into the full oxidation product, CO2. Next, the oxidation of methanol was studied over the same Pt/TiO2 catalyst. It was discovered that the water produced when methanol initially adsorbs to the catalyst surface is responsible for unlocking the oxidative capacity of the material. Finally, a custom packedbed reactor was designed and built that enabled unique experimental capabilities not yet available in commercial systems, and will be used in the future to directly test the oxidative capabilities of novel materials for chemical warfare agent destruction. / Doctor of Philosophy / The chemical interactions and reactions that occur between gases and surfaces are incredibly important for a multitude of technologies employed by governments, militaries, and citizens alike. The precise methods in which these gases interact with materials of interest determine whether said material can be used in a catalytic fashion. Much like how an automobile catalytic converter does not have to be replaced each time the vehicle is started; a catalyst is able to be used repeatedly without loss of function. Catalysts in general are unique in that they function to create or allow for chemical reactions to proceed through alternative, lower energy pathways that are more likely to occur under milder environmental conditions. In order to understand the chemical reactions that occur on a catalyst, a combination of specialized spectroscopic methods was used that allowed for tracking the precise chemical bonds that were formed or broken during reaction. A few different model chemical reactions are explored in this work, ranging from the conversion of carbon monoxide into CO2, and the oxidation of methanol, a small alcohol commonly found in fuel cells. The experimental techniques employed herein allowed for precise chemical mechanisms to be tracked, and the information gained will certainly be useful for the design of next-generation materials by future research.