Total Hydrogenation of Furfural and 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural over Supported Pd–Ir Alloy Catalyst

Abstract

Hydrogenation of aqueous furfural was conducted with SiO2-suported palladium-based bimetallic catalysts. The combination of palladium and iridium gave the best performance for the total hydrogenation to tetrahydrofurfuryl alcohol. Higher H2 pressure and lower reaction temperature were advantageous to suppress side reactions. The synergy between Pd and Ir in the hydrogenation catalysis is most remarkable for substituted furans as substrates. Furfural was first converted into furfuryl alcohol, which was further converted to tetrahydrofurfuryl alcohol. A small amount of tetrahydrofurfural was formed in the first step (∼20% selectivity), and the subsequent hydrogenation of tetrahydrofurfural was much slower. The combined yield of tetrahydrofurfuryl alcohol and tetrahydrofurfural reached 98%. The yield of tetrahydrofurfuryl alcohol reached 94% with larger amount of catalyst. Total hydrogenation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural was also possible using Pd–Ir/SiO2 catalyst. The performance of Pd–Ir/SiO2 catalyst was sl...