Electrocatalytic conversion of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural to 5-methyl-2-furanmethanol by delocalization state-tuned bond...

The electrocatalytic conversion of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) represents a green strategy for valorizing biomass-derived platform molecules into renewable fuels and value-added chemicals. However, most current electrocatalysts focus on reducing HMF to 2,5-furandimethanol (BHMF), while the selective reduction of HMF into 5-methyl-2-furanmethanol (MFA) in neutral electrolytes has received much less progress. In this work, we developed a Cu₃Ge intermetallic catalyst to modulate the electronic properties of Cu. Compared to pure Cu with the BHMF selectivity, the introduction of Ge atoms enhances the electron localization on the Cu lattice, facilitating the preferential CO bond cleavage and promoting the selective formation of MFA. The Cu₃Ge catalyst demonstrated an enhanced MFA selectivity of 27% ± 4%, suggesting a potential strategy for tuning electrocatalyst properties to achieve different reduction products.