Semi‑hydrogenation of acetylenic alcohol to olefinic alcohol catalyzed by Pd nanoparticles embedded in nitrogen-enriched porous carbon derived from ZIF-8

Herein, we developed a palladium (Pd) nanoparticle catalyst (Pd/NC-ZIF-8), immobilized on nitrogen-enriched carbon containing trace amounts of Zn2+ ions, derived from the zeolite imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8). The synthesis of this catalyst involved wet impregnation followed by reduction in hydrogen (H2) atmosphere at 800 °C. The Pd/NC-ZIF-8 catalyst exhibited exceptional catalytic activity (>99%), remarkable selectivity (95%), and robust durability (8 cycles) in the semi‑hydrogenation of 2-methyl-3-buten-2-ol to 2-methyl-3-buten-1-ol under mild reaction conditions (35 °C, 0.5 MPa H2). It surpassed various counterparts, including Pd/C, Pd/NC, and Pd/ZnO catalysts, as well as the similar catalysts obtained at alternative reduction temperatures.