Biosynthesis of ruthenium nanoparticles supported on nitric acid modified activated carbon for liquid-phase hydrogenation of 2,2,4,4-tetramethylcyclobutane-1,3-dione

A plenty of uniform and spherical ruthenium nanoparticles were prepared by the adsorption-bioreduction method using the Cacumen Platycladi extract and supported on the activated carbon which was modified with nitric acid. The catalytic performance of as-prepared Ru/AC-HNO3 catalysts was investigated in the liquid phase hydrogenation of 2,2,4,4-tetramethylcyclobutane-1,3-dione to 2,2,4,4-tetramethylcyclobutane-1,3-diol. Different characterization techniques of BET, XRD, TEM, and FTIR were applied to understand the origin of the catalytic activity. With a comprehensive analysis of the experimental results, we can draw a conclusion that the higher dispersion of ruthenium nanoparticles and the smaller particle size give rise to the results which indicate a remarkable enhancement of the catalytic performance in comparison with the non-modified AC samples. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.