Efficient hydrogenation of furfural to furfuryl alcohol by recoverable copper tailings catalyst

Abstract

Selective hydrogenation of substrates containing multiple unsaturated bonds (CC and CO) is a crucial catalytic process in the production of high-value chemicals. The development of non-precious metal catalytic systems is of importance for hydrogenation processes due to the high cost and scarcity of noble metals. Here, we report the direct hydrogenation of furfural (FAL) to furfuryl alcohol (FFA) over an active and stable copper tailings catalyst (CTC). The CTC showed 80% selectivity for FFA with full conversion of FAL at 200 °C under 3.0 MPa of H₂ within 72 h. Moreover, this catalyst shows good recyclability with no obvious loss in catalytic activity after five successive runs. This work uses copper tailings as an intrinsic catalyst for biomass hydrogenation, realizing the high-value utilization of industrial solid waste and providing a low-cost and sustainable catalytic system for the industrial production of biomass fine chemicals, which goes a step further towards the industrial application of heterogeneous catalysts for fine chemical production from biomass.