Selective hydrogenolysis of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural to 2,5-dimethylfuran with ethanol as a hydrogen donor over β-Mo2C embedded in carbon microspheres

The facile fabrication of low-cost and high-activity catalysts for selective hydrogenolysis of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (5-HMF) to 2,5-dimethylfuran (2,5-DMF) using renewable and economical ethanol as a hydrogen donor is still a significant challenge. In this work, beta-Mo2C embedded in carbon microspheres was prepared facilely by hydrothermal synthesis with the composite of ammonium molybdate and glucose, and subsequent one-pot solid-state thermolysis under a N-2 atmosphere. The optimal beta-Mo2C embedded in carbon microspheres achieved a high 2,5-DMF yield of 91.6% from 5-HMF selective hydrogenolysis with ethanol as a hydrogen donor under the optimized reaction conditions. Also, the optimal catalyst exhibited good recycling stability with slight loss of activity during four reuse runs. The chemical structure of the catalysts was characterized using multiple techniques. beta-Mo2C nanoparticles were demonstrated to be active sites for 5-HMF hydrogenolysis reactions, while the synergism between beta-Mo2C nanoparticles and their adjacent deficient carbon enhanced the H-2 evolution via ethanol decomposition and hydrogenolysis reaction.