RUTHENIUM MESO-TETRAKIS(4-CARBOXYPHENYL)PORPHYRIN (Ru-TCPP): SYNTHESIS AND ITS APPLICATION IN FURFURAL HYDROGENATION

Ruthenium containing meso-tetrakis(4-carboxyphenyl)porphyrin (Ru-TCPP) was prepared for the first time by a simple method. The resultant Ru-TCPP molecule was heterogenized on the surface of mesoporous molecular sieve material. The formations of the Ru-TCPP molecule and the heterogenized Ru-TCCP complex (Ru-TCPP-SBA-AM) were thoroughly monitored with the help of FT-IR, UV-Vis, DR UV-Vis, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen (CHN) elemental analysis, proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR), powder x-ray diffraction (XRD), and N2 sorption studies. The catalytic activity of the homogeneous (Ru-TCPP) and the heterogenized Ru-TCPP complex (Ru-TCPP-SBA-AM) was explored for the hydrogenation of furfural. This study revealed that homogeneous Ru-TCPP shows better conversion (60%) compared to heterogeneous Ru-TCPP-SBA-AM catalysts (40%), which can be explained based on the labile axial ligand in the homogeneous catalyst. In addition, furfural hydrogenation yields furfuryl alcohol along with some other hydrogenated products such as tetrahydrofurfuryl alcohol, γ-valerolactone, and 1,5-pentanediol.