An Efficient and Reusable Embedded Ru Catalyst for the Hydrogenolysis of Levulinic Acid to [gamma]-Valerolactone

To achieve a higher activity and reusability of a Ru-based catalyst, Ru nanoparticles were embedded in N-doped mesoporous carbon through a hard-template method. The catalyst showed excellent catalytic performance (314h super(-1) turnover frequency) and recyclability (reusable five times with 3% acti...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:ChemSusChem 2017-04, Vol.10 (8), p.1720-1732
Main Authors: Wei, Zuojun, Lou, Jiongtao, Su, Chuanmin, Guo, Dechao, Liu, Yingxin, Deng, Shuguang
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agglomeration
Carbon
Catalysts
Hydrogenolysis
Leaching
Migration
Nanoparticles
Surface chemistry
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Summary:To achieve a higher activity and reusability of a Ru-based catalyst, Ru nanoparticles were embedded in N-doped mesoporous carbon through a hard-template method. The catalyst showed excellent catalytic performance (314h super(-1) turnover frequency) and recyclability (reusable five times with 3% activity loss) for the hydrogenolysis of levulinic acid to [gamma]-valerolactone. Compared with the mesoporous carbon without N-doping and conventional activated carbon, the introduction of N-dopant effectively improved the dispersion of Ru nanoparticles, decreased the average size of Ru nanoparticles to as small as 1.32nm, and improved the adsorption of levulinic acid, which contributed to the increase in the activity of the catalyst. Additionally, the embedding method increased the interaction between Ru nanoparticles and carbon support in contrast with the conventional impregnation method, thus preventing the Ru nanoparticles from migration, aggregation, and leaching from the carbon surface and therefore increasing the reusability of the catalyst. Stability through doping: The embedding of Ru nanoparticles in N-doped mesoporous carbon effectively improve the dispersion and decrease the average size of the Ru nanoparticles, improve the adsorption of levulinic acid, and increase the interaction between Ru and the support. The strategy prevents the Ru nanoparticles from migration, aggregation, and leaching, and consequently increases the reusability of the catalyst.
ISSN:1864-5631
1864-564X
DOI:10.1002/cssc.201601769