Potentials of Ni-based bimetallic catalysts supported on zeolite for biokerosene production via catalytic cracking: A mini review

Aviation, a key global transportation mode, faces increasing demand for sustainable fuels, driving interest in renewable alternatives such as biokerosene derived from biomass. Biokerosene production commonly relies on catalytic hydrodeoxygenation, decarboxylation, and decarbonylation reactions; however, achieving high selectivity toward kerosene-range hydrocarbons remains challenging due to moderate yields, catalyst deactivation, and complex reaction pathways. Nickel-based catalysts are widely investigated for biomass upgrading owing to their hydrogenation activity, while zeolite supports provide acidity and shape selectivity that influence cracking and isomerization reactions. In recent studies, bimetallic Ni-based catalysts supported on zeolites have been explored to modify metal dispersion, acidity, and product distribution. Nevertheless, reported performances vary widely, and in many cases biokerosene yields do not improve relative to monometallic Ni or zeolite-only systems. This review compiles and discusses Ni-based bimetallic zeolite catalysts for biokerosene production, emphasizing observed performance trends, inconsistencies across catalyst formulations and reaction conditions, and the challenges in identifying consistent structure-performance relationships.