Production of g-valerolactone (GVL) from levulinate esters and several alcohols as hydrogen donors via a catalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH) process was performed over supported ruthenium hydroxide catalysts. Among the catalysts examined, Ru(OH) x supported on high-surface-area, anatase TiO 2 containing highly-dispersed ultrasmall Ru(OH) x nano-clusters was found to be the most active catalyst, which converted levulinate esters to GVL in an almost quantitative yield under mild reaction conditions with low catalyst loading. Addition of heterogeneous bases could afford a faster reaction rate in GVL production by accelerating the following intramolecular dealcoholation step. The catalyst was reusable over repeated catalytic cycles without loss of catalytic performance, making this material a potential candidate for efficient GVL production under ambient reaction conditions.
Levulinic acid and its esters, important intermediate chemicals produced from biomass resources, were converted to γ-valerolactone via a catalytic transfer hydrogenation process over silica-supported zirconia catalysts. Silica support with a higher surface area provided highly dispersed active zirconium oxide species, which exhibited superior catalytic activity to the conventional ZrO2 catalyst.
Hybrid organic-lead halide perovskites exhibit remarkable properties as semiconductors and light absorbers. Here, we report the formation of silsesquioxane-lead halide hybrid layered perovskites. We prepared silsesquioxane with a cubic cage-like structure and fabricated hybrid silsesquioxane-lead halide layered perovskites in a self-assembled manner. It is demonstrated that the silsesquioxane maintain their cage-like structure between lead halide perovskite layers. The silsesquioxane-lead halide perovskites also show excitonic absorption and emission in the visible light region similar to typical lead halide layered perovskites.
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