Microwave-Assisted Selective Hydrogenation of Furfural to Furfuryl Alcohol Employing a Green and Noble Metal-Free Copper Catalyst

Green, inexpensive, and robust copper-based heterogeneous catalysts achieve 100 % conversion and 99 % selectivity in the conversion of furfural to furfuryl alcohol when using cyclopentyl-methyl ether as green solvent and microwave reactors at low H₂ pressures and mild temperatures. The utilization of pressurized microwave reactors produces a 3-4 fold increase in conversion and an unexpected enhancement in selectivity as compared to the reaction carried out at the same conditions using conventional autoclave reactors. The enhancement in catalytic rate produced by microwave irradiation is temperature dependent. This work highlights that using microwave irradiation in the catalytic hydrogenation of biomass-derived compounds is a very strong tool for biomass upgrade that offers immense potential in a large number of transformations where it could be a determining factor for commercial exploitation.