Chemoselective Hydrogenation of Olefins Using a Nanostructured Nickel Catalyst

Abstract

The selective hydrogenation of functionalized olefins is of great importance in the chemical and pharmaceutical industry. Here, we report on a nanostructured nickel catalyst that enables the selective hydrogenation of purely aliphatic and functionalized olefins under mild conditions. The earth-abundant metal catalyst allows the selective hydrogenation of sterically protected olefins and further tolerates functional groups such as carbonyls, esters, ethers and nitriles. The characterization of our catalyst revealed the formation of surface oxidized metallic nickel nanoparticles stabilized by a N-doped carbon layer on the active carbon support.