Synthesis of Nitriles from Allyl Alcohol Derived from Glycerol over a Bimetallic Catalyst Zn30Ru1.0/γ-Al2O3

A bimetallic metallic catalyst Zn30Ru1.0/γ-Al2O3 was prepared and found efficient for the conversion of allyl alcohol with ammonia to nitriles. Under the optimized reaction conditions a total yield of 79.3% of nitriles was received in a fixed bed reactor, increased by 9.5% compared to that over the previously reported catalyst Zn30Cr4.5/γ-Al2O3. Characterization results revealed that the zinc is present in the form of ZnAl2O4 crystallites in the bimetallic catalyst, and the ruthenium species are present exactly in the same area of zinc species. The close distance allowed effective interaction of the two metals leading to synergistic effect between ZnAl2O4 crystallites and ruthenium species, facilitating the conversion of allyl alcohol to nitriles. The characterization in combination with catalytic results disclosed that the deactivation of the catalyst is mainly due to the carbon deposition during the catalytic run, and the activity can be recovered by calcination in air.