Au/MnO2 nanostructured catalysts and their catalytic performance for the oxidation of 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfural

• Three MnO2 morphologies were synthesized as catalyst supports for oxidation of 5-HMF.
• The catalyst with a microsphere morphology is highly efficient and chemo-selective.
• The effect of the support morphology on the catalytic performance was discussed.

We synthesized three novel catalysts using MnO2 as the supporting material. Gold was loaded adopting the deposition precipitation method. In order to explore how different structures of MnO2 affect the catalytic performance, three kinds of the MnO2 nano-structures were synthesized. And the resulted catalysts were used in the oxidation of 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfural in the presence of O2. The effect of the support morphology on the catalytic performance was discussed. And the most suitable one was selected.