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Furfural hydrogenation is one of the most important reactions for the transformation of biomass‐derived resources into high value‐added chemicals. To achieve a highly efficient catalytic activity of the reaction, catalysts with a high dispersion of metal nanoparticles (NPs) on solid supports are required. However, the development of highly efficient and stable catalysts is still challenging. Herein, the highly dispersed nickel nanoparticles (Ni NPs) supported on the hierarchical ZSM‐5 nanosheets (Z5‐NS) derived from the hierarchical ZSM‐5 nanosheets@NiAl‐layered double hydroxides (LDHs) composites were successfully fabricated. Remarkably, the fabricated Z5‐NS/Ni catalyst exhibited a high furfural conversion of 85 % with a yield of furfuryl alcohol of 60 %. This work illustrates the fabrication of highly metal dispersed on solid supports with high metal loading, which can enhance the catalytic performances in the hydrogenation of biomass‐derived compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Various commercial zeolites, including FER, MOR, ZSM‐5, BEA, and FAU frameworks, were treated with NH4F aqueous solutions to study the effects of fluoride etching on different zeolite frameworks. NH4F‐treated small‐medium pore FER, MOR, and ZSM‐5 samples showed much higher mesoporosities than the untreated ones without alteration of the structural compositions and acidic properties. On the other hand, the 12‐membered ring zeolites BEA and FAU showed severe dissolution of the framework aluminosilicate structure after NH4F etching due to the high accessibility of fluoride species into the framework structures. The effect of NH4F concentration on the fluoride treatment of H‐ZSM‐5 zeolite was specifically studied. From the results, we observed that structural etching with 20 wt % NH4F was optimal for fabricating open‐pore H‐ZSM‐5 zeolite and resulted in a high mesoporosity with comparable relative crystallinity and acidity with respect to the untreated H‐ZSM‐5. The catalytic activities of the open‐pore H‐ZSM‐5 were evaluated with acid‐catalyzed methanol and bioethanol conversions. Remarkably, the hierarchical open‐pore H‐ZSM‐5 zeolite fabricated via fluoride etching exhibited an enhanced catalytic performance in bioethanol conversion with >85 % conversion over 34 h TOS and a higher catalytic stability in methanol conversion than the parent H‐ZSM‐5 (~50 % of bioethanol conversion at 34 h TOS). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrogenation of biobased compounds can add value to platform molecules obtained from biomass refining. Herein, we explore the hydrogenation of 2-furoic acid (2-furancarboxylic acid, FCA), a derivative of furfural, with H 2 generated in situ by NaBH 4 hydrolysis at ambient conditions. Nearly complete conversion of FCA was obtained with tetrahydrofuroic acid (THFA) and 5-hydroxyvaleric acid (5-HVA) as the only two reaction products over Pt nanoparticles supported on hierarchical ZSM-5. Small Pt nanoparticles (2 to 3 nm) were stabilized by ZSM-5 nanosheets. At an optimized Pt loading, the Pt nanoparticles can catalyze the hydrolysis of NaBH 4 and the subsequent hydrogenation of FCA with the assistance of Brønsted acid sites. Nanostructuring ZSM-5 into nanosheets and its acidity contributes to the stability of the dispersed Pt nanoparticles. Deactivation due to NaBO 2 deposition on the Pt particles can be countered by a simple washing treatment. Overall, this approach shows the promise of mild hydrogenation of biobased feedstock coupled with NaBH 4 hydrolysis., (© 2023 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)