Effect of feedstock solvent on the stability of Cu/SiO2 catalyst for vapor-phase hydrogenation of dimethyl oxalate to ethylene glycol

The lifetime (200 h) of a Cu/SiO2 catalyst under DMO–ethanol feedstock is 20 times longer than that (10 h) of the catalyst under DMO–methanol feedstock without any modification of the catalyst. The stabilization effect of ethanol on the active centers can effectively slow down the agglomeration of copper particles during the hydrogenation process.