Efficient and Stable Cu-Cu2O@NC Catalysts for Selective Catalytic Conversion of Glycerol to Lactic Acid

Developing efficient Cu-based catalysts for catalytic conversion of glycerol to lactic acid has attracted much attention because of the low cost and high activity. However, construction of efficient Cu-based catalysts with high stability for aqueous reactions at high temperatures still remains a challenge. Herein, highly dispersed Cu-0 and Cu2O nanoparticles encapsulated by N-doped C (Cu-Cu2O@NC) were constructed by calcination of Cu-based MOF for the catalytic dehydrogenation of glycerol to lactic acid under N-2 atmosphere. The Cu-Cu2O@NC-400 catalyst exhibited 100 % conversion of glycerol with 84.8 % selectivity to lactic acid at 220 degrees C for 90 min. The Cu-Cu2O@NC-400 catalyst could be reused for eight times with almost no loss in the catalytic activity. The Cu-Cu2O@NC-400 catalyst is stable in the harsh reaction conditions, for the aggregation of Cu nanoparticles is avoided due to the confinement effect. The Cu-Cu2O@NC-400 catalyst demonstrated high catalytic activity and superior reusability benefitting from the N-doping and highly dispersed Cu nanoparticles embedded in N-doped C. This work will pave the way for designing efficient catalysts with high stability for catalytic dehydrogenation of alcohols.

Automated summary

Researchers have developed a highly efficient Cu-Cu2O@NC catalyst for the dehydrogenation of glycerol to lactic acid under high temperature aqueous conditions. The catalyst exhibited high conversion and selectivity, as well as excellent stability and reusability.