Hierarchical mesoporous CuO@NiO nanoparticles were synthesized using metal−organic frameworks (MOFs) as the precursor. We investigated the physicochemical properties of the MOF-derived CuO@NiO (M-CuO@NiO) and its activity for the deoxygenation of fatty acids. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) revealed that M-CuO@NiO possessed a homogeneous alloy configuration with well-dispersed CuO and NiO. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) suggested that M-CuO@NiO retained the rich oxygen vacancies, excellent stability, and strong acidity, which are beneficial to the deoxygenation of fatty acids. The conversion of stearic acid (∼99.9%) and a selectivity of 94.4% to C8-C18 alkanes demonstrated the high activity of M-CuO@NiO, which is comparable to that of the noble catalyst Pt/C. In addition, a conversion of >99% for other fatty acids (lauric acid, palmitic acid, and oleic acid) and the selectivities of >90% for saturated fatty acids (lauric acid and palmitic acid) and 76.7% for oleic acid to C8-C18 alkanes indicate consistently high activity of M-CuO@NiO toward different fatty acids. Finally, we proposed the mechanistic pathways for the deoxygenation of stearic acid to C8-C18 alkanes. Overall, conclusions from this study support that M-CuO@NiO is a promising catalyst for the low-cost production of green diesel.

Designing economical and nonprecious catalysts with a catalytic performance as good as that of noble metals is of great importance in future renewable bioenergy production. In this study, the metal–organic framework (MOF) was applied as a precursor template to synthesize Co 3 O 4 nanoparticles with a carbon matrix shell (denoted as M-Co 3 O 4 ). To select the synthesized optimal catalyst, stearic acid was chosen as the model reactant. The effects of catalyst dosage, methanol dosage, water dosage, temperature, and reaction time on catalytic efficiency were examined. Under the designed condition, M-Co 3 O 4 exhibited high catalytic performance and the catalyst showed higher conversion of stearic acid (98.7%) and selectivity toward C8–C18 alkanes (92.2%) in comparison with Pt/C (95.8% conversion and 93.2% selectivity toward C8–C18). Furthermore, a series of characterization techniques such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), nitrogen adsorption isotherms (Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) method), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) was applied to investigate the physicochemical properties of the catalysts. Finally, we proposed that decarbonization (deCO) could be the presumably mechanistic pathway for the production of C8–C18 alkanes from the decomposition of stearic acid.