MPV reduction of ethyl levulinate to γ-valerolactone by the biomass-derived chitosan-supported Zr catalyst

Abstract

Herein, we used the biopolymer chitosan as a support to synthesize a biomass-derived catalyst (chitosan–Zr) to achieve GVL in 97% yield from MPV reduction of EL, by using isopropanol as a hydrogen source. The catalyst system is also applicable to the reduction of various organic compounds with carbonyl groups. Additionally, we have proposed a possible mechanism for this reaction based on the systematic investigation towards the reaction. Moreover, the recycle and reuse experiment showed that this chitosan–Zr exhibited long-life catalytic performance and can maintain its high catalytic performance even after five runs of recycle and reuse experiments.