High‐Performance Supported Ru Catalysts for the Aqueous‐Phase Hydrogenation of Levulinic Acid to γ‐Valerolactone

LEGUIZAMÓN-APARICIO, MARÍA S.; MUSCI, JUAN JOSÉ; MONTAÑA, MAIA; MÉNDEZ, LETICIA J.; BARBELLI, MARÍA L; RODRÍGUEZ-AGUADO, ELENA; CECILIA, JUAN A; RODRÍGUEZ-CASTELLÓN, ENRIQUE; LICK, ILEANA D.; CASELLA, MONICA LAURA

CHEMCATCHEM

WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH

Año: 2024

1867-3880

γ-Valerolactone (GVL) can be obtained by efficienthydrogenation of levulinic acid using ruthenium-based catalysts in anaqueous medium. This paper reports an in-depth study on theactivity and selectivity of Ru catalysts supported on zirconia-alumina,focusing on the effect of Ru concentration (0.5, 1.5 and 3 wt.% ofRu) and the selection of operational reaction variables. The resultsshowed that the activity strongly depends on the number andoxidation state of the supported ruthenium particles. The most activecatalyst, Ru3/ZA, presented the highest number of nanometricparticles of zerovalent Ru and the highest number of acid sites. Thiscatalyst gave ca. 100% selectivity towards GVL, at high conversionof levulinic acid (over 99%) under the best operating conditionsevaluated (120°C, 3 MPa H2 pressure, 1 h of reaction, and 0.1 g ofcatalyst). In addition, this catalyst kept high levels of conversion andselectivity after successive reuse cycles.