Chemoselective Hydrogenation of Cinnamaldehyde on Iron-Oxide Modified Pt/MoO3-y Catalysts.

Hydrogenation of α,β-unsaturated aldehydes to unsaturated alcohols suffers a huge challenge in chemoselectivity. Herein, surface decoration by FeOx is introduced to remarkably improve the selectivity of cinnamyl alcohol (COL) in cinnamaldehyde (CAL) hydrogenation on Pt/MoO3-y . The enhanced acidity on Pt-FeOx interfaces is beneficial for the chemisorption and activation of C=O bonds, promoting selective hydrogenation. The optimal catalysts with defined FeOx decoration afford efficient and chemoselective CAL hydrogenation (91.3 % selectivity) under mild conditions (PH2 =1 MPa, T=30 °C). Moreover, such innovation is further extended to develop other efficient metal (Ir, Rh and Pd) catalysts, identifying a universal promotion to Pt-group metals. This work is anticipated to inspire the rational design of high-performance catalysts via effective surface/interface engineering.