Cellulose Supported Ruthenium Nanoclusters as an Efficient and Recyclable Catalytic System for Benzene Hydrogenation under Mild Conditions

Abstract

Ruthenium nanoclusters supported on biopolymer cellulose were prepared by chemical reduction technique and characterized by various experimental tools. The cellulose supported Ru catalyst effectively hydrogenates benzene under mild and solvent free conditions. The complete conversion of benzene to cyclo hexane was achieved at 70°C and 2.0 MPa partial pressure of H2 in 1 h. Effect of various parameters such as reaction temperature, H2 partial pressure, metal loading and catalyst amount on hydrogenation of benzene was studied in detail. The catalyst was recovered from product and reused upto four times without significant loss in its catalytic activity.