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Unravelling the Ru‐Catalyzed Hydrogenolysis of Biomass‐Based Polyols under Neutral and Acidic Conditions
Author(s) -
Hausoul Peter J. C.,
Negahdar Leila,
Schute Kai,
Palkovits Regina
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
chemsuschem
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.412
H-Index - 157
eISSN - 1864-564X
pISSN - 1864-5631
DOI - 10.1002/cssc.201500493
Subject(s) - deoxygenation , hydrogenolysis , decarbonylation , chemistry , catalysis , erythritol , selectivity , reaction mechanism , organic chemistry , xylitol , polyol , sorbitol , disproportionation , photochemistry , medicinal chemistry , food science , fermentation , polyurethane
Abstract The aqueous Ru/C‐catalyzed hydrogenolysis of biomass‐based polyols such as erythritol, xylitol, sorbitol, and cellobitol is studied under neutral and acidic conditions. For the first time, the complete product spectrum of C 2 –C 6 polyols is identified and, based on a thorough analysis of the reaction mixtures, a comprehensive reaction mechanism is proposed, which consists of (de)hydrogenation, epimerization, decarbonylation, and deoxygenation reactions. The data reveal that the Ru‐catalyzed deoxygenation reaction is highly selective for the cleavage of terminal hydroxyl groups. Changing from neutral to acidic conditions suppresses decarbonylation, consequently increasing the selectivity towards deoxygenation.