Co‐Ni‐P‐B catalyzed hydroformylation of long linear α olefins

BACKGROUND As indirect liquefaction of coal has been carried out in megaton scale, extension of the Fischer‐Tropsch synthesis products has received renewed interest. Hydroformylation provides a way for the transformation of alkenes to aldehydes. Homogeneous rhodium complex catalysts are efficacious but expensive and not easy to recover and reuse. Heterogeneous catalysts are desired to enable their easy separation. Amorphous four‐component non‐precious metal catalysts were prepared using facile reduction and their activity toward hydroformylation of long linear α olefins was investigated. RESULTS Obtained Co‐Ni‐P‐B presented uniform nanoparticles that were well‐dispersed Co with more electrons, attributing to isolation and electron transfer among the four components. The Co, Ni, P, and B were in both atomic states and oxidation states. The Co in Co‐Ni‐P‐B was shown to be electron‐enriched with enhanced catalytic activity. Co‐Ni‐P‐B displayed good catalytic activity for hydroformylation of linear C6, C8, C10, or C12 α olefins, and the highest activity for 1‐octene. The conversion of 1‐octene and the selectivity of C9 aldehydes reached 99.62% and 96.30%, respectively. The ratio of nonanal to isononanal was 1.44. The selectivity for isomeric products was 3.70%. There existed an appropriate four‐component ratio for hydroformylation of 1‐octene owing to synergistic effects among the Co, Ni, P, and B. Co‐Ni‐P‐B exhibited good reusability. CONCLUSION Amorphous four‐component Co‐Ni‐P‐B prepared by facile reduction showed good catalytic performance toward hydroformylation of long linear C6, C8, C10, or C12 α olefins due to synergistic effects among the Co, Ni, P, and B. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry (SCI).