Sophie Hermans

The production of sorbitol from biomass, and especially from its cellulosic component, has been studied as a sustainable method for producing platform molecules. Because it requires two steps, namely, hydrolysis and hydrogenation, bifunctional materials are required as catalysts for this transformation. This study reports a bifunctional catalyst composed of sulfonic functions grafted onto a carbon support for the hydrolysis step and RuO2 nanoparticles for the hydrogenation step. As sulfur can easily poison Ru, synthetic optimization is necessary to obtain an efficient bifunctional catalyst that surpasses a mere Ru/C catalyst. Kinetic studies highlight the better activity of the bifunctional catalysts compared to the reference monofunctional catalysts. Besides being active in hydrolysis reactions, sulfonic functions also have a role in avoiding the degradation of the sorbitol produced. The recyclability of the bifunctional catalyst is also superior to that of the monofunctional one.