Catalytic Hydrogenation of Nitrocyclohexane with CuCo/SiO₂ Catalysts in Gas and Liquid Flow Reactors

Catalytic hydrogenation of nitrocyclohexane proved to be an attractive alternative source of various chemical compounds: cyclohexanone oxime, cyclohexanone, cyclohexanol, cyclohexylamine and dicyclohexylamine. A growing interest in this reaction has been observed in the last few years. Herein, we present the catalytic performance of Cu/SiO₂, Co/SiO₂ and CuCo/SiO₂ in gas and liquid flow nitrocyclohexane hydrogenation. The analysis of synthesized catalysts morphology (BET, TPR, XRD, TEM) in terms of their catalytic behavior allows us to draw general conclusions and determine the optimal conditions for the production of desired products. Application of the monometallic copper leads to the formation of cyclohexanone as the main product, but with low activity. On the other hand, Co/SiO₂ shows high activity but gives cyclohexylamine. Bimetallic system CuCo(3:1)/SiO₂ allows for the efficient production of 100% cyclohexanone at 5 bar and 75 °C.