Catalytic Hydrogenation of Derived Vegetable Oils Using Ion-Exchange Resin-Supported Ruthenium Nanoparticles: Scope and Limitations

The hydrogenation of vegetable oil-derived compounds using ion-exchange resin-supported ruthenium nanoparticles is reported for the first time. These supported metal catalysts (Ru_DOWEX2-X) were prepared by a simple two-step procedure using commercial and cheap materials, affording high efficiency with a low metal loading. They were characterized by several physicochemical techniques and showed well-dispersed ruthenium nanoparticles into robust beads of the strong cation-exchange resin DOWEX2-X. Their catalytic activity was evaluated for the hydrogenation of methyl undecenoate in heptane under mild experimental conditions (30 °C, 10 bar of H2), and the high activities of the metal solid catalysts deeply depended on the amount of water inside the pores. In terms of recyclability, several physicochemical analyses after successive catalytic runs showed the robustness of the immobilized ruthenium nanoparticles, for which very low metal leaching and no particle aggregation were observed. The decrease in the catalytic activity could be explained by progressive water loss contained in the resin pores, which was illustrated by a decrease in the bead diameter. The immobilized ruthenium nanoparticles were also evaluated in the catalytic hydrogenation of vegetable oils and their corresponding methyl esters and showed a remarkably high activity compared to other catalytic systems tested under similar mild reaction conditions