Novel Pt catalysts supported on zeolitic silicoaluminophosphate were developed, and their performance was evaluated for the hydrogenative conversion of furoic acid under mild reaction conditions. The catalysts exhibited high activity and selectivity for the conversion to δ ‐valerolactone, a versatile intermediate for the production of polyesters from woody biomass. Catalyst characterization revealed that the high activity is attributed to the high dispersion of Pt nanoparticles, which is facilitated by the porous structure of the support. Further investigation using analogs and intermediates provided insights into the reaction mechanism, suggesting site‐selective partial hydrogenation followed by selective Csp 2 –O bond cleavage. The developed catalyst was successfully applied in a continuous flow reaction, demonstrating high productivity and selective conversion.
Ishitani et al. (2026) studied this question.