A ruthenium and palladium bimetallic system superior to a rhodium co-catalyst for TiO2-photocatalyzed ring hydrogenation of aniline to cyclohexylamine

Cyclohexylamine (CHA) is used as an important raw material in chemical industries. Since the production of CHA requires a high temperature and excess amounts of hydrogen gas (H2) and ammonia, the development of a simple reaction operated under milder conditions using a safe compound is indispensable for achieving sustainable chemistry. A highly selective ring hydrogenation of aniline (AN) to CHA over a titanium(IV) oxide photocatalyst having a co-catalyst in water at room temperature, in which oxalic acid was used as the hydrogen source in place of H2, is described in this paper. Among TiO2 photocatalysts having co-catalysts, Rh-TiO2 showed high activity for CHA production, while Pd-TiO2 and Ru-TiO2 showed negligible activity. When a bimetallic photocatalyst, Ru/Pd-TiO2, was used, the yield was larger than that when Rh-TiO2 was used. Metal particles loaded on TiO2 were observed by using TEM, and electronic states of Ru and Pd were evaluated by using XPS. Interactions among metal, AN and CHA were investigated through adsorption experiments. Based on the results, active sites for AN hydrogenation are discussed.