Robust bimetallic Pt–Ru catalysts for the rapid hydrogenation of toluene and tetralin at ambient temperature and pressure Original Research Article

To facilitate the drive towards ever lower energy, ‘greener’ processing, robust bimetallic aluminosilicate-supported Pt–Ru catalysts that can operate under atmospheric conditions have been developed for the rapid room temperature hydrogenation of aromatics (toluene and tetralin) at 1 atm H2. The toluene/methylcyclohexane couple has the added interest of being a promising cyclic hydrocarbon combination for the storage of hydrogen. The easily handled air-stable catalysts were prepared using the incipient wetness method and characterised by ICP-AES, XRD, TEM as well as nitrogen sorption measurements. Compared to their monometallic counterparts, the bimetallic catalysts displayed significantly higher turn-over-frequencies (TOFs), consistent with a synergistic relationship between platinum and ruthenium. Article Outline