Morphological effect of non-supported copper nanocrystals on furfural hydrogenation

Abstract Four metal Cu nanocrystals with or without surfactants were prepared by morphology-controlled solution phase reduction and tested in the selective hydrogenation of furfural to furfuryl alcohol. It was revealed that the copper nanowire derived from ethylenediamine-assisted synthesis exhibited three times higher turnover frequency and lower apparent activation energy compared to the spherical particle, suggesting a significant morphology-dependent effect. The residual surfactants were found to be adverse for furfural hydrogenation due to restricting the adsorption of reactants. The surface oxidation of as-prepared Cu had no influence on the catalytic performance because the Cu 2 O on the surface of Cu materials would be reduced to the active metal Cu under the reaction conditions.