Solvent-free semihydrogenation of acetylene alcohols in a capillary reactor coated with a Pd-Bi/TiO2 catalyst

© 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. A solvent-free semihydrogenation of 2-methyl-3-butyn-2-ol (MBY) to 2-methyl-3-buten-2-ol was performed in a capillary reactor (10 m long, 0.53 mm i.d.) coated with a titania supported Pd-Bi catalyst. Several coatings with different Pd/Bi ratio have been prepared. The catalysts have been characterized with SEM, TEM, EDX, XRD analysis and N 2 adsorption-desorption measurements. The maximum alkene yield of 90% was obtained at a molar Pd/Bi ratio of 11. The yield was increased to 95% in the presence of 10 mol.% pyridine in the reaction mixture. The alkene selectivity decreased with time due to leaching of Bi. The leaching was fully suppressed in the presence of 1 vol.% acetic acid in the reaction mixture. The catalyst remained stable for 100 h of continuous operation. The results demonstrate that capillary reactors provide alkene selectivity the same compared to ideal stirred tank batch reactors