Selective hydrogenation reactions provide a pivotal and
promising
strategy for upgrading substances with unsaturated functional groups,
in which supported non-noble metal catalysts play a crucial role in
determining catalytic performance toward desirable products. By means
of a precipitation method, hydrothermal and solvothermal methods,
sol–gel synthesis as well as ion exchange method, various kinds
of supported catalysts with high efficiency have been reasonably designed
and developed. The detailed investigations by virtue of comprehensive
studies demonstrated that in addition to the inherent properties of
metal elements, the nanosized effect, the metal-alloy effect, and
the metal–support interaction impose significant influences
on the resulting catalytic behavior. Moreover, we discuss the catalytic
applications of heterogeneous non-noble metal catalysts with focus
on the catalytic hydrogenation of unsaturated aldehydes/ketones, alkynes
and alkadienes, and functionalized nitroaromatic hydrocarbons. In
this review, on the basis of achievements in the representative investigations,
suggestions and prospects for the further progresses in the development
of heterogeneous non-noble metal catalysts toward selective hydrogenation
reactions have been put forward.