ABSTRACT Catalytic hydrogenation of furfural to furfuryl alcohol is a key reaction in biomass refining, as furfural is an important platform molecule that can be selectively upgraded into high‐value furfuryl alcohol. In this study, a novel Pt‐Ce bimetallic‐modified molybdenum carbide catalyst was developed for the selective hydrogenation of furfural to furfuryl alcohol. Catalysts with different Pt and Ce loadings were synthesized via coprecipitation followed by temperature‐programmed carburization, and their catalytic performance was systematically evaluated. Under mild reaction conditions (100 °C, 1 MPa H 2 ), the optimized PtCe 1 /α‐MoC catalyst achieved 99.9% conversion of furfural and 99.9% selectivity toward furfuryl alcohol. Characterization studies showed that incorporation of Ce increased the oxygen‐vacancy concentration on the α‐MoC support, enhancing adsorption and activation of aldehyde groups, whereas Pt introduction improved the surface area and promoted hydrogen dissociation. The synergistic interaction between the Pt‐Ce bimetallic sites significantly enhanced aldehyde hydrogenation efficiency. This work provides a new strategy for designing efficient and stable catalysts for biomass hydrogenation, offering substantial potential for high‐value utilization of biomass resources.
Qian et al. (Sun,) studied this question.