Highly Selective Hydrogenation of Levulinic Acid to γ-Valerolactone Over Ru/ZrO2 Catalysts

We studied the catalytic hydrogenation of levulinic acid over zirconia supported ruthenium catalysts. Four different Ru/ZrO2 catalysts were prepared by different pre-treatments and using different zirconium supports (ZrOx(OH)4−2x and ZrO2). Although the final compositions of the catalysts are the same, the pre-treatments strongly affect catalytic activity. Remarkably, one of the catalysts gave >99% yield of γ-valerolactone under mild conditions. This catalyst was also robust, and could be recycled at least four times without any loss in activity or selectivity. The activity is attributed to the presence of small ruthenium particles together with acidic sites on the catalyst

Plasma-Assisted Synthesis of Monodispersed and Robust Ruthenium Ultrafine Nanocatalysts for Organosilane Oxidation and Oxygen Evolution Reactions

We report a facile and general approach for preparing ultrafine ruthenium nanocatalysts by using a plasma‐assisted synthesis at <100 °C. The resulting Ru nanoparticles are monodispersed (typical size 2 nm) and remain that way upon loading onto carbon and TiO2 supports. This gives robust catalysts with excellent activities in both organosilane oxidation and the oxygen evolution reaction