Insights into selective hydrogenation of levulinic acid using copper on manganese oxide octahedral molecular sieves.

Selective hydrogenation of levulinic acid (LA) to γ-valerolactone (GVL) was studied using copper on manganese oxide octahedral molecular sieve (OMS-2) as catalysts. A range of copper supported on OMS-2 catalysts was prepared using the modified wet-impregnation technique and characterized thoroughly using powder X-ray diffraction, inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy metal analysis, Fourier transform infrared, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and N sorption analyses. Process parameters for selective hydrogenation of LA to GVL were optimized using the design of experiment (DoE) approach with response surface methodology comprising a central composite design.