Continuous production of 1,4-pentanediol from ethyl levulinate and industrialized furfuryl alcohol over Cu-based catalysts

Highly efficient synthesis of 1,4-pentanediol (1,4-PDO) from industrialized biomass-based products is still a challenge due to the inherent chemical stability of intermediate product gamma-valerolactone. The aim of the present research was to evaluate the influence of the synthetic conditions of CuMgAl layered double hydroxides on their physicochemical properties as well as catalytic performance in pure ethyl levulinate hydrogenation to produce 1,4-PDO in fixed-bed reactors. Systematic characterization results demonstrated that the CuMgAl catalyst prepared with mixed alkali as the precipitant has appropriate amounts of acid-base sites and a higher electron cloud density of Cu, which could well activate the carbonyl functional groups in the substrate molecule, and thus excellent reaction performance can be obtained. Ultimately, two-stage-packed dual solid catalysts in fixed-bed reactors were designed for one-step conversion of industrial furfuryl alcohol (FOL) to 1,4-PDO through an alcoholysis hydrogenation integrated continuous process. 94.3% yield of 1,4-PDO can be obtained from FOL in this effective tandem reaction.