Comparison of normal and reverse precipitation methods in the preparation of Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 catalysts for hydrogenolysis of butyl butyrate

•Different activity trends of NP- and RP-series catalysts with higher Cu/Zn ratios•High-temperature carbonate (HT-CO3) present in RP-series precursors•Higher amount of HT-CO3 present in catalyst precursor leading to a high activity•Copper surface area in a linear relationship with butanol productivity•HT-CO3 amount and copper surface area as a descriptor of Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 catalyst

For the hydrogenolysis of butyl butyrate into butanol, Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 catalysts are prepared using normal precipitation (NP) and reverse precipitation (RP) methods. The activity trends of NP-series and RP-series catalysts are different as a function of the Cu/Zn ratio. Through several characterization techniques, the major differences between both series of catalyst samples are caused by the high-temperature carbonate (HT-CO3) present in the precursor phase. The butanol productivity of RP-series catalysts is thus found to be associated with the HT-CO3 amount in precursor and calcined samples, while it shows a linear relationship with the copper surface area.

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