Solvent feedstock effect: the insights into the deactivation mechanism of Cu/SiO2 catalysts for hydrogenation of dimethyl oxalate to ethylene glycol.

The variation of the supports on the Cu/SiO2 catalyst plays an important role in the catalytic performance for hydrogenation of dimethyl oxalate. The loss of silica in the form of tetramethoxysilane from the support under the reaction conditions is responsible for the deactivation of the Cu/SiO2 catalyst.