Design of Rhenium-Decorated Mesoporous Nickel Phyllosilicate-Derived Ni-Re/MCM-41 Catalyst for Efficient Hydrogenation of Levulinic Acid to γ-Valerolactone

Key Points

• The study aims to optimize Ni-Re catalysts supported on MCM-41 for more efficient hydrogenation of levulinic acid to γ-valerolactone.
• Synthesis of Ni and NiRe catalysts using ammonia evaporation and impregnation methods.
• Characterization of catalyst structure and activity.
• Evaluation of hydrogenation efficiency using levulinic acid as a substrate.
• The rhenium decoration enhanced the catalytic activity for hydrogenation.
• High conversion rates of levulinic acid to γ-valerolactone were achieved with the optimized catalyst.
• Structure-activity correlations were established, informing future catalyst design.