Controllable construction of MgO promoted Co-based catalyst for highly efficient hydrogenolysis of furfuryl alcohol to bio-based 1,5-pentanediol

Catalytic conversion of biomass-derived furfuryl alcohol (FFA) into high-value 1,5-pentanediol (1,5-PDO) is a promising route to decrease reliance on fossil energy, in which improving catalytic efficiency is a crucial issue. Herein, a series of CoMgO/C catalysts were synthesized from multivariate metal–organic frameworks (MOFs). It was found that the 3-CoMgO/C-500 catalyst exhibited the highest catalytic efficiency, achieving a 25.2 mmol/(g cat. ·h) 1,5-PDO productivity at 160 °C and 2.5 MPa H 2 pressure. Based on the characterizations and DFT calculations, the Mg clusters-derived MgO located adjacent to Co species and enhanced the dispersion of Co phase. Moreover, the spatial proximal MgO can effectively facilitate electron transfer, form interaction with Co active sites and promote the dissociation of hydrogen, which is favor for the hydrogenolysis process. Furthermore, with the assistance of MgO, the CoMgO/C catalyst could adopt the dual O adsorption configuration and activate the C2 O1 bond in FFA molecules, resulting in higher efficiency for the ring-opening reaction of FFA. This work reveals the assistance mechanism of MgO on improving catalytic performance of active sites through modulation of the electronic structure and adsorption configuration, which provides a deep insight into the design of economical and highly efficient catalysts for the production of bio-1,5-PDO.