A Combined Catalyst of Pt Nanoparticles and TiO₂ with Water‐Tolerant Lewis Acid Sites for One‐Pot Conversion of Glycerol to Lactic Acid

Catalytic conversion of glycerol to valuable chemicals has been recognized as an attractive and challenging reaction in biorefinery. In this paper, we demonstrated that a combined catalyst of Pt nanoparticles and TiO 2 worked as a highly active catalyst for the one‐pot conversion of glycerol to lactic acid in water. The yield of lactic acid reached 63 % under oxygen atmosphere without the use of any additives such as strong bases, and the catalyst could be reused without significant loss of the catalytic performance. The mechanistic studies revealed that Pt nanoparticles on TiO 2 selectively oxidized glycerol to C3 aldehyde/ketone, and Lewis acid sites on TiO 2 smoothly promoted the dehydration and rehydration/rearrangement reactions of the intermediates to produce lactic acid efficiently.