Alumina incorporated with mesoporous carbon as a novel support of Pt catalyst for asymmetric hydrogenation

Mesoporous carbon incorporated with different alumina contents has been prepared by chelate-assisted co-assembly method. These composites were used as supports for Pt particles, and the as-prepared catalysts were reduced at 873 K in hydrogen atmosphere. Our current study by using N-2 sorption, X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy revealed that carbon incorporated with 10-15 wt% alumina was favorable for the high Pt dispersion and retained the mesostructure of carbon. Moreover, 15 wt% alumina-carbon composite supported Pt particles modified by cinchonidine afforded the highest (84.8%) enantiomeric excess and could be reused at least five times for the asymmetric hydrogenation of ethyl 2-oxo-4-phenylbutyrate in acetic acid. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.