High-performance and stable Ru-Pd nanosphere catalyst supported on two-dimensional boron nitride nanosheets for the hydrogenation of furfural via water-mediated protonation. (15th April 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Bharath, G.; Rambabu, K.; Hai, Abdul; Banat, Fawzi; Rajendran, Saravanan; Dionysiou, Dionysios D.; Loke Show, Pau
• Is Part Of: Fuel. Volume 290(2021)
• Publication Date: 2021-04-15
• Subjects: Bimetallic alloy -- Boron nitride -- Functional catalyst -- Furfural hydrogenation -- Bio-oil hydrogenation; Fuel -- Periodicals; Coal -- Periodicals; Coal; Fuel; Periodicals; 662.6
• DOI: 10.1016/j.fuel.2020.119826
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0016-2361

Abstract

Graphical abstract: Highlights: Ru-Pd/boron nitride (BN) catalyst was developed for hydrogenation of furfural. Solvent-dependent reaction pathways of FF conversion on Ru-Pd/BN catalyst was proposed. FF-rich bio-oil derived from date-tree biomass was upgraded over the Ru-Pd/BN catalyst. Ru-Pd/BN catalyst was a desirable catalyst for the stabilization and production of biofuel. Abstract: Bimetallic Ru-Pd catalysts are increasingly being investigated for applications in the upgrading of bio-oils to biofuels, owing to their high catalytic activities. Similarly, the recent development of Ru-Pd alloyed nanoparticle (NP) incorporated into hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) catalysts that can be utilized for tuning the selectivity of desired products has also received considerable attention. In the present study, nanoclusters of Ru 0 -Pd 0 that self-assemble into spherical-like Ru-Pd bimetallic catalytic sites were successfully grown on the surfaces of BN nanosheets (Ru-Pd/BN NCs) via microwave irradiation for 30 s. HR-TEM investigations revealed the formation of 25 nm sized Ru-Pd nanoparticles comprising ≤ 2 nm hexagonal closed-pack (hcp) Ru-Pd clusters with Ru crystallites on the BN nanosheets. Further, furfural was effectively converted into furfural alcohol at a lower temperature (150 °C) and valuable cyclopentanone was obtained at a higher temperature (>250 °C) over the Ru-Pd/BN catalyst through the protonation of water molecules. Furthermore, various solvents namely 2-propanol, toluene, and cyclohexane were also used to achieve the production of furan and tetrahydrofuran over the Ru-Pd/BN catalyst via the decarbonylation of furfural under mild reaction conditions. Moreover, for real-time upgrading, furfural-rich bio-oil produced by the pyrolysis of date-tree biomass was processed over the Ru-Pd/BN catalyst to obtain a maximum of 97% furfural conversion with a 71% FFA yield at 150 °C. The stability and reusability of the catalyst were also determined. The results demonstrated that the Ru-Pd/BN catalyst is highly active and chemically stable, and is therefore suitable for industrial applications.