Synergistic catalytic activity of core-shell Pd@UiO-66(Hf) MOF catalyst for the one-pot hydrogenation-esterification of furfural

Abstract

The development of new strategies for cascade reactions that demand composite catalysts with multifunctionality is imperative to advance bio-oil upgradation and its combustion properties. This work reports a model bio-oil-upgrading method of one-pot hydrogenation-esterification (OHE) of furfural for selective synthesis of furfuryl acetate using a bifunctional Pd@UiO-66(Hf) core-shell material. Additionally, the catalytic activity of Pd/UiO-66(Hf) and Pd@UiO-66(Zr) materials were evaluated in the OHE reaction for comparison. Various properties of the screened catalysts were elucidated by different characterization techniques. The Pd@UiO-66(Hf) hybrid material demonstrated high catalytic performance in the OHE reaction of furfural with acetic acid. The superior activity of Pd@UiO-66(Hf) over the other MOF-based hybrid materials is correlated with its surface acidic properties and the synergistic effect of Pd NPs with the acidic sites (on SBU of MOF). The excellent performance exhibited by Pd@UiO-66(Hf) in OHE of furfural with acetic acid is superior to the reported catalysts. The present study offers new opportunities for the efficient conversion of biomass-derived molecules into value-added products. This is the first-ever report on MOF-based catalyst studied for the OHE reaction of furfural with acetic acid for the selective synthesis of furfuryl acetate.