Influence of Process Conditions on Activity of Ruthenium-encapsulated Porous Hollow Silica Sphere Catalyst for Hydrogenation of Ammonium Bicarbonate into Formic Acid

This work investigated influence of concentration of ammonium bicarbonate on the activity of ruthenium-encapsulated porous hollow silica sphere catalyst for hydrogenation of ammonium bicarbonate into formic acid. From the analyses of the reaction solution by total carbon dioxide meter and HPLC, almost all the carbonate species in the reaction solution before and after the reaction is bicarbonate ion up to saturated concentration of ammonium bicarbonate, while certain amount of carbonate ion existed in the solution over saturated concentration probably because of the solution pH values. The tendency reflected formic acid yield, and the highest yield of formic acid was obtained in the solution with saturated ammonium bicarbonate solution.