Construction of Atomically Dispersed Niδ+ Species on Leaf-like Al2O3 for Selective Transfer Hydrogenation of Furfural

Catalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH) of α , β -unsaturated aldehydes to α , β -unsaturated alcohols over metal oxide catalysts is of potential for industrial application. Herein, we have developed a Ni/f - Al 2 O 3 catalyst comprising atomically dispersed Ni δ + (2 <  δ  < 3) species on porous leaf-like Al 2 O 3 , over which a > 97% yield of furfuryl alcohol (FOL) from CTH of furfural (FFR) is obtained with a turnover frequency (TOF) of 216 h − 1 . Most importantly, the catalyst can be recycled at least 6 times without obvious loss of activity. Its superior catalytic performance can be attributed to the abundant and stable Ni δ + -type acid-base pairs on the surface of Ni/f - Al 2 O 3 .