In Situ Synthesis of Chitin-Derived Rh/N–C Cataylsts: Efficient Hydrogenation of Benzoic Acid and Derivatives

A novel N-doped carbon supported Rh catalyst was developed via one-pot pyrolysis of chitin and (NH4)3RhCl6. The catalyst exhibited excellent catalytic activity and recyclability for the hydrogenation of benzoic acid to cyclohexane carboxylic acid. Characterization indicated that the high catalytic performance of Rh/N–C-700 is mainly attributed to the proportion of Rh0 to Rh3+ and Rh particle size. More importantly, this novel synthesis strategy significantly increased the interaction between Rh nanoparticles and N-doped carbon in contrast with the conventional impregnation and NaBH4 reduction methods, thus preventing the Rh nanoparticles from migration, aggregation, and leaching from the support surface and therefore improving the reusability of the catalyst. This synthetic method may pave a new way for producing N-doped carbon supported metal catalysts from chitin on a large scale, which is attractive for industrial applications.