Au/ZrO2: an efficient and reusable catalyst for the oxidative esterification of renewable furfural

Highly dispersed gold based catalysts supported on zirconia were employed in the oxidative esterification of furfural by an efficient and sustainable process. Au/ZrO2 catalysts were calcined at different temperatures in order to modulate gold nanosize. A detailed characterization was carried out for the sake of ascertaining if micro structural changes occurred, and the size issue was discussed. Catalysts stability and recycling were investigated too, and the opportunity of reusability by thermal oxidation at a proper temperature was successfully proved.

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► The oxidative esterification of furfural was investigated on Au/ZrO2 catalyst.
► Au/ZrO2 is active and selective.
► Au/ZrO2 is recyclable by thermal oxidation at a proper temperature.
► The calcination at a proper temperature allows to obtain the ideal catalyst.