Modification of Sepiolite for Its Catalytic Upgrading in the Hydrogenation of Furfural
In this work, a new methodology for dispersing metal particles supported in clay has been described. For this purpose, a sepiolite has been modified by a microwave-assisted treatment to increase the surface area and pore volume due to the progressive leaching of the Mg<sup>2+</sup>-speci...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-02-01
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| Series: | Ceramics |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2571-6131/8/1/21 |
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| Summary: | In this work, a new methodology for dispersing metal particles supported in clay has been described. For this purpose, a sepiolite has been modified by a microwave-assisted treatment to increase the surface area and pore volume due to the progressive leaching of the Mg<sup>2+</sup>-species located in the octahedral sheet. These materials have been used as support to incorporate Cu species on the surface by a precipitation-deposition process from the thermal decomposition of urea at 95 °C. Once calcined and reduced, the Cu-based catalysts showed a Cu<sup>0</sup>-particle size lower than 5 nm in the case of catalysts whose support is a sepiolite subjected to acid treatment. On the other hand, when raw sepiolite is used as a support, the Cu<sup>0</sup>-crystal size is much larger (15–20 nm). This difference in Cu<sup>0</sup>-crystal size showed a variable catalytic behavior for the hydrogenation reaction of furfural in gas-phase. Catalysts with larger particle size promote the hydrogenation reaction, obtaining a yield towards furfuryl alcohol close to 60% after 5 h at 190 °C. In contrast, catalysts with smaller particle size promote the hydrogenation reaction and subsequently the hydrogenolysis reaction, obtaining methylfuran as a product with a yield of 58% after 1 h of reaction at 190 °C; however, the sites where hydrogenolysis are involved are more prone to be deactivated. |
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| ISSN: | 2571-6131 |