Efficient and selective conversion of glycidol to 1,2-propanediol over Pd/C catalyst

The present work deals with the catalytic hydrogenolysis of glycidol to 1,2-propanediol. Reactions were carried out in a closed steel reactor using noble metal based heterogeneous catalysts (Pd, Rh, Pt) under hydrogen pressure (1–8 bars) in the temperature range of 25–140 °C. Pd/C shows the highest glycidol conversion (96%) under solvent free conditions after 24 h with high selectivity to 1,2-propanediol (93%). The effect of the solvent was also investigated and it was demonstrated that ethanol reduces drastically oligomer production enhancing selectivity up to 99% with a significant reaction time reduction (6 h). The Pd/C catalyst shows high recyclability and could be reused several times (9 cycles) without losses in activity and selectivity