Effect of potassium in copper catalysts on selective C–O bond activation of furfuryl alcohol

Selective C-O bond activation in biomass-derived furanic compounds is essential for biomass upgrading. Hydrogenolysis of furfuryl alcohol (FFA) provides two value-added chemicals 1,5-pentanediol (1,5-PDO) and 1,2-pentanediol (1,2-PDO), the generation of both involve selective C-O bond cleavage of FFA, but the respective catalytic active sites still remain obscure. Here we prepared a series of potassium-modified basic oxide supported Cu catalysts and found the product distribution of 1,2-PDO/1,5-PDO selectivity ratio decreased with the rise of K loadings. Various characterization techniques show that the Cu/MgO mainly consists of Cu nanoparticles, while the 2 K-Cu/MgO is dominant by oxidized Cu species especially Cu+. It is proposed that the selective C-O bond cleavage of the furan ring of FFA to 1,5-PDO over basic oxide supported Cu catalysts is attributed to Cu+ species, while the formation of 1,2-PDO is dependent on Cu nanoparticles. This work sheds light on the selective C-O bond activation in the biomass-derived furanic compounds. [Display omitted] •Introduction of K in Cu/MgO changed the selective hydrogenolysis of FFA.•The presence of K enhanced formation of 1,5-PDO simultaneously suppressed 1,2-PDO.•K promoted the dispersion of Cu species and increased the content of Cu+•Cu+ favored the selective C-O bond cleavage of FFA to 1,5-PDO.•Large Cu particles benefited the hydrogenolysis to 1,2-PDO.