High-performance depolymerization of lignin by bimetallic Cu-Ni@C catalysts prepared with MOF as a carrier under mild conditions

In this study, Cu was loaded on the surface of Ni-MOF by impregnation, and significantly improved the catalytic activity on lignin and its derivatives. The characterization showed that the non-noble bimetallic catalyst owned good dispersion, rich acid sites and stable structure was successfully synthesized. The introduced Cu reduced the reduction temperature of Ni, increased the acidity of the catalyst, and thus improved the catalytic performance and product selectivity of the catalyst. Under the mild conditions (120 °C), the conversion percentage of BPE was as high as 89.6 % using isopropyl alcohol as the hydrogen source. When the reaction temperature was 260 °C, the depolymerization percentage of corn cob lignin was 81.12 %, and the yield of phenol monomer could reach 11.46 wt. %. This work may provide an effective strategy for the preparation of efficient bimetallic catalysts for lignin hydrogenolysis.