Ru/TiO<sub>2</sub> Combined with Self-Reconstructing Copper Nanowires for Efficient and Stable Electroreduction of 5-Hydroxymethylfurfural
Shenjie Lv, Yanju Lu, Xiaobo Guo, Kui Wang, Jianchun Jiang, Junming Xu
Abstract
The electrocatalytic conversion of biomass derivative 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) to 2,5-bis(hydroxymethyl)furan (BHMF) offers a promising pathway for biomass upgrading. A significant challenge, however, is the competing hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), which limits the reaction potential window, reduces the Faraday efficiency (FE), and compromises the long-term stability of the catalyst. To address this issue, we developed a segmented adsorption catalyst (Ru/TiO 2 –Cu NWAs) by integrating self-assembled Cu nanowires with Ru/TiO 2 . This catalyst enables the electrocatalytic reduction of HMF to BHMF over a wide potential range (−0.2 to −0.8 V vs RHE), achieving a Faradaic efficiency (FE) of 92.9% and a production rate of 0.53 mmol cm –2 h –1, while maintaining stable performance over 12 cycles. Electrochemical analysis and density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that Ru nanoparticles (NPs) facilitate the generation of H* through hydrolysis, TiO 2 provides adsorption sites for the spilled-over H*, and Cu NWAs offer additional sites for the chemisorption of HMF*. The reaction proceeds when spilled-over H* comes into contact with adsorbed HMF*. This segmented adsorption strategy effectively reduces the competitive adsorption between HMF and water molecules for active sites, ensuring high production rates while significantly broadening the operational potential window for the reaction.