Efficient CoCu/SiO2 Catalyst Derived from Co(Cu) Silicate for Aqueous-Phase Furfural Hydrogenation

Converting the abundant biomass resources in nature into fine chemicals can not only reduce carbon emissions but also effectively deal with the depletion of fossil energy, which is of strategic significance for sustainable development. In this paper, by optimizing the content of bimetallic components, highly active co-doped Co₁Cu₃ bimetallic silicate was designed and synthesized. After reduction, a highly dispersed and stable Co₁Cu₃/SiO₂ catalyst was obtained, which was used to catalyze the aqueous phase hydrogenation of furfural (FFR) to cyclopentanone (CPO). Compared with the traditional supported catalyst, the Co₁Cu₃/SiO₂-ammonia evaporation (AE)-300 catalyst prepared by AE has the best performance. Under the optimal reaction conditions, the conversion of FFR was as high as 95.1 % and the selectivity of CPO was 88.6 %. This high activity can be attributed to the formation of highly dispersed and uniform metal active sites with low content of Co. At the same time, the formation of flocculent silicate enhances the synergism between CoCu and SiO₂ support and increases the specific surface area of the catalyst. In addition, the experimental results show that the reaction carbon balance will be destroyed with the high concentration of FFR solution.