STUDY ON NANO COPPER-BASED CATALYSTS FOR THE HYDROGENATION OF METHYL 3-HYDROXYPROPIONATE TO 1, 3-PROPANEDIOL

Nano copper-based catalysts were prepared by co-precipitation method and the performance of catalytic hydrogenation for methyl 3-hydroxypropionate (MHP) to 1, 3-propanediol (1, 3-PDO) on the nano catalysts were studied under a high-pressure microcontinuum fixed-bed reactor. The effects of structure, texture, and composition of the catalysts on the catalytic performance were investigated by characterizing the catalysts with XRD, TG–DTG, SEM, and N2 adsorption/desorption analysis technique. The results showed that addition of promoters enhanced the activity and selectivity of copper-based catalysts, which promoted the dispersion of the active components effectively and stabilized the active center of the catalysts. Especially, the copper-based catalyst of loaded P could restrain side-reaction effectively and improve selectivity obviously, the conversion of MHP and the selectivity of 1, 3-PDO could be 91.30% and reach 90.15%, respectively.