Enhancement of Catalytic Activity by γ-NiOOH for the Production of Methyl Lactate from Sugars in Near-Critical Methanol Solutions

Xilei Lyu, Lixin Wang, Xujie Chen, Ling Xu, Juncheng Wang, Shuguang Deng, Xiuyang Lu

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

15 Scopus citations

Abstract

As-synthesized Ni-based Lewis acidic catalysts, with tunable concentrations of β-Ni(OH) 2 and γ-NiOOH, were tested on the conversion of sugars to methyl lactate (MLA) in near-critical methanol solutions. The concentration of γ-NiOOH increased with an increase in the Ni(NO 3 ) 2 ·6H 2 O/2-methylimidazole (Ni/2-Hmim) molar ratio. Compared to β-Ni(OH) 2 , the γ-NiOOH showed more mesopores in the catalyst, which facilitated the diffusion of reactant and products. Ni/2-Hmim-4 [Ni(NO 3 ) 2 ·6H 2 O/2-methylimidazole molar ratio = 4] exhibited the best catalytic activity. Under optimal conditions (180 °C for 12 h), the highest MLA yield was 41.9% on the conversion of glucose. Ni/2-Hmim-4 was employed to convert disaccharides to MLA. Notably, for sucrose, the reaction afforded a 38.7% MLA yield at 200 °C for 12 h. The catalyst was reusable for at least three cycles.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)3659-3665
Number of pages7
JournalIndustrial and Engineering Chemistry Research
Volume58
Issue number9
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 6 2019

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Chemistry
  • General Chemical Engineering
  • Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

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