Preparation of Ni- and Mo-based catalysts supported on γ-Al₂O₃ for hydrocracking of Calophyllum inophyllum oil

A simple method for dispersing supported metal catalysts comprising Ni and/or Mo supported on γ-Al₂O₃ was performed by wet impregnation. This study investigated the preparation, characterization, and catalytic application of monometallic catalyst of NiO and MoO and bimetallic catalyst NiO–MoO supported on γ-Al₂O₃ for hydrocracking of Calophyllum inophyllum oil (CIO). Two variations of metal content were set at 7.5 wt% (marked as x) and 15.0 wt% (marked as y); thus, the prepared catalysts were denoted as _yNiO/γ-Al₂O₃, _yMoO/γ-Al₂O₃, _xNiO_xMoO/γ-Al₂O₃, and _yNiO_yMoO/γ-Al₂O₃. Among the catalysts investigated, _yNiO_yMoO/γ-Al₂O₃ exhibited the best performance in hydrocracking of CIO with total metal content, acidity, and specific surface area of 13.73 wt%, 9.13 mmol g⁻¹, and 104.31 m² g⁻¹, respectively, and produced 69.44 wt% liquid product (biofuel). The gas chromatography–mass spectroscopy analysis result of the liquid product showed that the biofuel was composed of 38.54 wt% gasoline fraction (C₅–C₁₂), 9.80 wt% kerosene fraction (C₁₃–C₁₅), 17.69 wt% diesel fuel fraction (C₁₆–C₁₉), and 3.43 wt% heavy oil (>C₁₉).