The conversion of polysaccharides to hydrogen gas. Part III

Abstract Cellulose has been subjected to alkaline degradation at temperatures between 100 and 200°C. The resulting products, after filtration and treatment with activated charcoal, yielded solutions containing formic acid, with conversions up to 7–8% by weight with respect to cellulose. The solutions were then reached in the presence of a palladium catalyst at 80°C at pH 4 and the hydrogen gas evolved was measured. A limited number of experiments were performed with cellulose containing waste materials and these were also converted to formic acid and hence to hydrogen gas. Additional studies with glyceraldehyde revealed that the latter is a possible intermediate in the formation of formic acid from cellulose and a speculative mechanism is proposed indicating how formate ions and formic acid may be generated from cellulose.