A Stable and Efficient Ruthenium Catalyst Supported on a Mesoporous Spheric Nanographite for Hydrogenation of Dimethyl Terephthalate

Abstract Although metal catalysts supported on activated carbon are widely utilized in industrial catalysis, the hydrogenation performance on complex aromatic compounds with multiple substituents, such as dimethyl terephthalate (DMT), remains unsatisfactory due to the amorphous and microporous nature of activated carbon. Herein, a stable and highly efficient ruthenium catalyst supported on detonation‐synthesized nanographite (Ru/DNG) was synthesized and demonstrated outstanding performance in hydrogenation of DMT to 1,4‐cyclohexane dicarboxylate (DMCD). Under similar reaction conditions, Ru nanoparticles supported on this mesoporous nanographitic carbon exhibit superior catalytic activity in the hydrogenation of DMT compared to those supported on graphite, carbon nanotubes (CNTs), and activated carbon. The high activity of the Ru/DNG catalyst is mainly attributed to the special spheric morphology in nanoscale and abundant defective sites, including edges and holes in the graphic carbon framework caused by the explosion methods. The abundant defective sites on the surface of nanographitic carbon can highly efficient‐stabilized Ru nanoparticles with a size of 1–2 nm. And the Ru nanoparticles supported on defective nanographitic carbon are electrons‐rich due to the donating of electrons from graphitic carbon.