WSU and PNNL develop new biofuel catalyst

In Washington state, researchers at Washington State University (WSU) and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) decided to combine iron and palladium into a new catalyst that is expected to significantly increase the economic viability of biofuel production. They added just a pinch of palladium to iron, a recipe that efficiently removes oxygen from biomass without the rust.

The paper on their work was chosen as the cover story in the October issue of the scientific journal ACS Catalysis. In it, the researchers said they discovered that combining iron with very small amounts of palladium helped to cover the catalyst’s surface with hydrogen, which accelerates the process of turning biomass into biofuel.