Influence of Sulfuric Acid on the Performance of Ruthenium-based Catalysts in the Liquid-Phase Hydrogenation of Levulinic Acid to γ-Valerolactone.

The presence of biogenic or process-derived impurities poses a major problem on the efficient catalytic hydrogenation of biomass-derived levulinic acid to γ-valerolactone; hence, studies on their influence on catalyst stability are now required. Herein, the influence of sulfuric acid as feed impurity on the performance of Ru-based heterogeneous catalysts, including Ru/ZrO2 and mono- and bimetallic Ru-on-carbon catalysts in dioxane as solvent, was investigated. The carbon-supported Ru catalysts proved to be very sensitive to minor amounts of sulfuric acid. In stark contrast, Ru/ZrO2 showed a remarkable stability in the presence of the same impurity, which is attributed to the sulfate-ion adsorption capacity of the support. Preferential sulfate adsorption onto the surface of ZrO2 effectively protects the Ru active phase from deactivation by sulfur poisoning. A simple catalyst regeneration strategy was effective in removing adsorbed impurities, allowing efficient catalyst recycling.

Quasi-homogeneous oxidation of glycerol by unsupported gold nanoparticles in the liquid phase.

A quasi-homogeneous solution of gold nanoparticles prepared by the Turkevich method was used as an unconventional catalyst in the oxidation of glycerol (GLY) in the liquid phase. The highest obtained conversion was 100 % after 3 h of reaction at 100 °C under an oxygen atmosphere (5 bar). The main products were glyceric, glycolic, formic, tartronic, and oxalic acid with selectivities of 28, 36, 25, 9, and 2 %, respectively. Traces of hydroxypyruvic and acetic acid were also detected (combined selectivities below 1 %). To elucidate the reaction mechanism and specify the role of gold nanoparticles in the oxidation process, a series of experiments under various reaction conditions were carried out. The effect of reaction temperature, oxygen pressure, gold concentration, and GLY/base molar ratio was investigated. All catalytic results were systematically compared to the corresponding noncatalytic base-induced transformations (blank tests). Such an approach allowed us to separate and clarify the respective driving parameters for the transformation of GLY (presence of a base and activity of the gold catalyst). The reaction mechanism comprised a series of oxidation and C-C cleavage reactions, whereas additional oxidation-reduction reactions (of the Cannizzaro type) could also occur in the presence of the base.

Highly controlled synthesis of nanometric gold particles by citrate reduction using the short mixing, heating and quenching times achievable in a microfluidic device.

Homodispersed 1.8 nm gold nanoparticles were obtained reproducibly in high yields using the classical Turkevich protocol at a high concentration in a continuous flow capillary reactor. The microfluidic reactor made from commercially available items permitted short mixing, heating and quenching times which are the key parameters of this synthesis.