Effects of Boron Oxide on Ag/BN Catalyst for the Hydrogenation of Dimethyl Oxalate To Methyl Glycolate
摘要
Methyl glycolate has broad potential applications in fine chemical fields such as pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, coatings, and serves as an important intermediate in organic synthesis. A series of hexagonal boron nitride supported Ag catalysts for hydrogenation of dimethyl oxalate (DMO) to methyl glycolate (MG) were elaborately investigated. Ag was loaded onto oxygen-rich hexagonal boron nitride (Oh-BN) and commercial hexagonal boron nitride (Mh-BN) to prepare the Ag/Oh-BN and Ag/Mh-BN catalysts by ammonia evaporation method. Under the conditions of a temperature of 200 ℃, a hydrogen-to-ester molar ratio of 100, and a weight hourly weight space velocity of 0.6 h⁻¹, the yield of MG for the Ag/Oh-BN catalyst was 94.6%, while that for the Ag/Mh-BN catalyst was only 41.6%. The catalysts were comprehensively analyzed using a variety of characterization techniques such as BET, ICP, XRD, XPS, TEM, FTIR, H2-TPR, and NH3-TPD. The results showed that the Ag/Oh-BN catalyst exhibits smaller particle sizes and higher binding energy compared to the Ag/Mh-BN catalyst. The higher binding energy of Ag in Ag/Oh-BN arised from the hybridization between p orbitals of O atom in B₂O₃ and d-orbitals of Ag atom, leading to partial electron transfer from Ag to B₂O₃. In addition, incorporating a controlled amount of B₂O₃ into commercial hexagonal boron nitride (Mh-BN) produced the Ag/Mh-BN|xB₂O₃ catalyst. The Ag particle size and electronic environment in this catalyst closely resembled those of the Ag/Oh-BN catalyst, providing further evidence of the critical role of B₂O₃.