Alumina incorporated with mesoporous carbon as a novel support of Pt catalyst for asymmetric hydrogenation

•Alumina-carbon composites were prepared by chelate-assisted co-assembly strategy.•Pt/alumina-carbon catalysts were reduced by one-step high temperature (873 K) method.•10–15 wt% alumina incorporated with carbon was favorable for the high Pt dispersion.•Pt/15 wt% Al2O3-carbon showed excellent selectivity for asymmetric hydrogenation.

Mesoporous carbon incorporated with different alumina contents has been prepared by chelate-assisted co-assembly method. These composites were used as supports for Pt particles, and the as-prepared catalysts were reduced at 873 K in hydrogen atmosphere. Our current study by using N2 sorption, X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy revealed that carbon incorporated with 10–15 wt% alumina was favorable for the high Pt dispersion and retained the mesostructure of carbon. Moreover, 15 wt% alumina-carbon composite supported Pt particles modified by cinchonidine afforded the highest (84.8%) enantiomeric excess and could be reused at least five times for the asymmetric hydrogenation of ethyl 2-oxo-4-phenylbutyrate in acetic acid.

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