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Hydrogenation reduction of furfural (FAL) to furfuryl alcohol (FOL) confirms the requirement of sustainable development of society. The key to realize this transformation is to design a cost-effective and environmental catalyst with both Lewis acid and Lewis base sites. Here, we report the preparation of a multifunctional zirconium-based hybrid (Zr@PS-MSA) using Pennisetum sinese (PS), an annual natural lignocellulose, as a natural organic ligand. The prepared hybrid was used as an efficient catalyst for catalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH) of FAL to FOL in isopropanol, and a high yield of up to 99.6% was accomplished by manipulating exposed versatile acid−base sites. Further studies indicated that Zr@PS-MSA possessed remarkable cycle stability and could be consecutively run at least 6 times without significant change in the catalytic activity. Mechanistic studies for CTH of FAL to FOL through isotopically labeled 2-propanol-d 8 experiments evidently demonstrate FAL reduction via intermolecular hydrogen transfer. More gratifyingly, Zr@PS-MSA can also efficiently catalyze the various biomass-derived carboxides to corresponding alcohols, with yields of up to 92.4%.

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