Highly active and stable spinel-oxide supported gold catalyst for gas-phase selective aerobic oxidation of cyclohexanol to cyclohexanone.

Abstract Highly dispersed gold nanoparticles supported on Cu-doped spinel oxides were prepared by a simple deposition-precipitation method. The results indicate that Au/MgCuCr 2 O 4 catalyst is very efficient for gas-phase oxidation of cyclohexanol to cyclohexanone, giving 69.5% and 86.4% yield of cyclohexanone at 260 °C and 300 °C, respectively. Deactivation was not observed in a 100 h stability test. This excellent performance can be correlated with the highly stable gold nanoparticles in the reaction deriving from the strong gold-support interaction and efficient Au Cu synergy. Graphical abstract Unlabelled Image Highlights • First report of gas-phase oxidation cyclohexanol using spinel-supported gold • >95% conversion and > 90% selectivity to cyclohexanone • No deactivation of the Au/MgCuCr 2 O 4 catalyst • Au Cu synergy pivotal role to high reaction rate and selectivity [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]