Facile conversion of levulinic acid to gamma-valerolactone using a high surface area magnetically separable Ni/NiO catalyst

A study on the conversion of levulinic acid (LA) to gamma-valerolactone (GVL) and methyl levulinate (ML) has been done using a high surface area Ni/NiO catalyst. The hydrogenation of levulinic acid over the Ni/NiO catalyst showed high mass activity for gamma-valerolactone formation (16 mmol g(cat)(-1) h(-1)) at 110 degrees C at 40 bar pressure. The presence of acidity effects the conversion of LA to GVL and ML. First-principles DFT calculations were used to calculate the adsorption energy and transition state for the reaction. The Ni/NiO catalyst showed 99% LA conversion and 94% GVL selectivity at 110 degrees C in methanol, which is higher than the reported activity of Ni-based catalysts (RANEY (R) Ni and Ni/Al2O3).