Ruthenium-Catalyzed Transformation of Ethylene Glycol for Selective Hydrogen Gas Production in Water

We developed an efficient process for producing hydrogen gas from aqueous ethylene glycol (EG) at 90-160 degrees C over a ruthenium catalyst. We achieved a high yield of hydrogen gas (up to 3.0 n(H2)/n(EG)) and formic acid (85% yield) from ethylene glycol in aqueous alkaline medium at 110 degrees C, where the role of reaction temperature and base concentration was found to be critical in achieving a high yield of H2. The chemical and morphological properties of the synthesized ruthenium catalyst were established using P-XRD, TEM, XPS, and other techniques. Advantageously, the ruthenium catalyst exhibited appreciably high long-term stability for over 70 h, generating ca. 290 L of H2 per gram of Ru with a yield of 1035 L of H2 per L of ethylene glycol.

Automated summary

We developed an efficient process for producing hydrogen gas from aqueous ethylene glycol (EG) at 90-160 degrees C over a ruthenium catalyst. The role of reaction temperature and base concentration was found to be critical in achieving a high yield of H2. The ruthenium catalyst exhibited high long-term stability, generating ca. 290 L of H2 per gram of Ru with a yield of 1035 L of H2 per L of ethylene glycol.