Ruthenium nanoparticles on colloidal carbon spheres: An efficient catalyst for hydrogenation of ethyl lactate in aqueous phase

A ruthenium catalyst supported on glucose-derived carbon spheres was prepared and characterized by TEM, XPS, FTIR TG-DTG and XRD. The Ru/CSP catalyst showed an excellent catalytic performance for the hydrogenation of ethyl lactate to 1, 2-propanediol in water. The catalyst was recycled for six times without the marked loss in both the activity and selectivity. The steric hindrance and electronic effects of substrates on the hydrogenation were tested. It is postulated that the high performance of this novel catalyst system is related to the cooperation between the hydroxyl groups of support surface and water as a solvent.