Bimetallic Engineering Ni@C Promoted by Bi Doping Directly Catalyzes Aqueous Ethanol to C6+ Alcohols

The direct upgrading of biomass-derived aqueous ethanol to produce long-chain alcohols is important due to the growing demand for value-added sustainable fine chemicals and liquid fuel. In this work, a bimetallic Ni@C catalyst was synthesized by using a facile sol–gel method with bismuth (Bi) doping. The bimetallic NiBi-1/1@C catalyst exhibited distinct advantages in forming C6+ high-carbon alcohols and inhibiting C1 byproducts compared with the monometallic Ni@C. Optimally, an ethanol conversion up to 87.2% with a C6+ alcohol selectivity of 79.9% was demonstrated and the C1 byproduct selectivity was suppressed to 10.1%. The doping of Bi modulates the adsorption of aldehydes on the Ni site, which inhibits the C–C cleavage side reaction, thus realizing the direct and efficient conversion of an ethanol solution to C6+ alcohols. These findings provide a promising strategy for directly converting biomass-derived ethanol to sustainable high-carbon alcohols and biofuel precursors.