Selective hydrogenation of biomass-derived furan-based compounds over supported Ni-Pd bimetallic alloy nanoparticle at room-temperature

Abstract

The expanding consumption and reliance on fossil fuels have left no other choice but to search for some alternative sources. In search for some sustainable and renewable sources, biomass has drawn very much attention. Herein, we demonstrated a simple and productive methodology to hydrogenate the furan aldol adducts under mild and environmental friendly condition using cost-effective, highly active nanoparticles. We achieved selective hydrogenation of different furan aldol adducts at room temperature using H2 balloon over supported bimetallic Ni0.9Pd0.1 alloy nanoparticles to synthesize compounds like 1b, 4a which can be further functionalized to produce high-density fuel components. This method is very useful to synthesize long chain (C8-C16) fuel additives.