Highly Active CuFeAl-containing Catalysts for Selective Hydrogenation of Furfural to Furfuryl Alcohol

Svetlana A Selishcheva,Andrey A Saraev,Alexander V Fedorov,Maksim Yu Lebedev,Vadim A Yakovlev,Olga A Bulavchenko,Andrey A Smirnov

doi:10.3390/catal9100816

Svetlana A Selishcheva, Andrey A Saraev + Show 5 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/catal9100816

Copy DOI

Abstract

CuFe-containing catalysts with different copper oxide content were prepared by fusion of metal salts. The obtained catalyst showed high activity in the hydrogenation of furfural to furfuryl alcohol (FA) in the batch reactor in the presence of isopropanol as a solvent at a temperature of 100 °C and a hydrogen pressure of 6.0 MPa. The yield of FA and furfural conversion are 97% and 98%, respectively. In the solvent-free reaction in the flow-type reactor; the most active catalyst Cu20Fe66Al14 leads to the 96% formation of FA with 100% conversion of furfural at liquid hourly space velocity (LHSV) = 1 h−1; 160 °C and a hydrogen pressure of 5.0 MPa during 30 h. According to the X-ray diffraction (XRD) method, the active component of the spent and fresh Cu20Fe66Al14 catalyst is the same and is represented by metallic copper and Fe3O4-type spinel. Using different methods, the formation of active sites was investigated.

Highlights

The production of motor fuels components and valuable chemical compounds requires the development and improvement of catalytic processes that effectively transform non-edible plant-based raw materials into various products under modern challenges
Eight samples of the catalysts with different copper contents were studied in the process of furfural hydrogenation to furfuryl alcohol (FA)
The study of the process of furfural selective hydrogenation to furfuryl alcohol showed that copper–iron catalysts were highly active in this reaction in a batch reactor

Summary

Introduction

The production of motor fuels components and valuable chemical compounds requires the development and improvement of catalytic processes that effectively transform non-edible plant-based raw materials into various products under modern challenges. One of the most promising starting materials is furfural, which can be considered as a platform for the production of a large number of compounds with different properties and a wide range of applications [1,2,3,4]. The technology for furfural production is quite developed and based on acid hydrolysis of hemicellulose (a component of the plant cell walls) [7]. About 50% of the total volume of furfural goes to the production of FA, which has a wide range of application: Production of resins, flavors, components of motor fuels (levulinic acid), in the pharmaceutical industry (ranitidine), biochemistry, etc.

Methods

Results

Conclusion