The reductive conversion of biomass-derived furfural through catalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH) over non-precious metal catalysts is regarded as a promising strategy to successfully implement the biorefinery concept. Here, we show that two-dimensional niobium carbides (MXenes) efficiently catalyze the liquid-phase CTH of furfural in the presence of 2-propanol as hydrogen donor. At 160 °C Nb2CTx and Nb4C3Tx showed remarkable initial activity values (130 and 73 h−1, respectively), exceeding the one of pure Nb2O5 (21 h−1) by factor of 6.2 and 3.5. A targeted surface characterization by acid site titrations and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy allowed to correlate the catalytic behavior with the acidic features and the peculiar surface chemistry of Nb-MXenes species. The presence of strong acid sites in Nb2CTx was associated to high initial activity, but also to a pronounced tendency to undergo deactivation. Differently, Nb4C3Tx, despite the lower initial activity, assured 70 % of furfural conversion after 8 h and it showed good stability over six runs. This study could bring new opportunities for the rational design of advanced noble metal-free catalysts with enhanced activity for biomass valorization.
Two-dimensional MXenes as catalytic “flying carpets” to transport biomass valorization towards new horizons: The case of furfural catalytic transfer hydrogenation over noble-metal free niobium-based carbides / S. Campisi, A. Gervasini, L. Prati, X. Zhang, K. Liang, M. Naguib, A. Villa. - In: CATALYSIS TODAY. - ISSN 0920-5861. - (2022). [Epub ahead of print] [10.1016/j.cattod.2022.10.002]
Two-dimensional MXenes as catalytic “flying carpets” to transport biomass valorization towards new horizons: The case of furfural catalytic transfer hydrogenation over noble-metal free niobium-based carbides
S. CampisiPrimo
;A. GervasiniSecondo
;L. Prati;A. Villa
Ultimo
2022
Abstract
The reductive conversion of biomass-derived furfural through catalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH) over non-precious metal catalysts is regarded as a promising strategy to successfully implement the biorefinery concept. Here, we show that two-dimensional niobium carbides (MXenes) efficiently catalyze the liquid-phase CTH of furfural in the presence of 2-propanol as hydrogen donor. At 160 °C Nb2CTx and Nb4C3Tx showed remarkable initial activity values (130 and 73 h−1, respectively), exceeding the one of pure Nb2O5 (21 h−1) by factor of 6.2 and 3.5. A targeted surface characterization by acid site titrations and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy allowed to correlate the catalytic behavior with the acidic features and the peculiar surface chemistry of Nb-MXenes species. The presence of strong acid sites in Nb2CTx was associated to high initial activity, but also to a pronounced tendency to undergo deactivation. Differently, Nb4C3Tx, despite the lower initial activity, assured 70 % of furfural conversion after 8 h and it showed good stability over six runs. This study could bring new opportunities for the rational design of advanced noble metal-free catalysts with enhanced activity for biomass valorization.File | Dimensione | Formato | |
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