Conversion of furfural to 2-methylfuran over Cu/Al₂O₃, Ni/Al₂O₃ and Ni-Cu/Al₂O₃ catalysts were investigated with formic acid as a hydrogen donor. Ni/Al₂O₃ showed a high catalytic activity but a moderate selectivity to 2-methylfuran. Contrarily, Cu/Al₂O₃ showed a low catalytic activity but a high selectivity for carbonyl reduction. Over the bimetallic catalysts Ni-10%Cu/Al₂O₃, by increasing Ni content, more furfural was converted with the reduction of carbonyl primarily. The effect of reaction solvent and the fraction of formic acid were also studied. The result showed that isopropanol solvent could contribute to the formation of furfuryl alcohol with 96% selectivity through the transfer hydrogenation process. Formic acid could decompose to H₂ and CO₂, remarkably promoting the hydrogenolysis of furfuryl alcohol to 2-methylfuran. Finally, 100% conversion and 92 mol% yield of 2-methylfuran could be obtained over 10%Ni-10%Cu/Al₂O₃. It was attributed to the synergic effect of Ni-Cu metals, with increased affinity for carbonyl reduction.

以甲酸为氢供体，研究了Cu / Al ₂ O ₃，Ni / Al ₂ O ₃和Ni-Cu / Al ₂ O ₃催化剂上糠醛向2-甲基呋喃的转化。Ni / Al ₂ O ₃表现出高催化活性，但是对2-甲基呋喃具有中等选择性。相反，Cu / Al ₂ O ₃显示出低的催化活性，但是对羰基还原的选择性高。在双金属催化剂上Ni-10％Cu / Al ₂ O ₃通过增加Ni的含量，主要通过羰基的还原来转化更多的糠醛。还研究了反应溶剂的作用和甲酸的馏分。结果表明，异丙醇溶剂可通过转移加氢过程以96％的选择性促进糠醇的形成。甲酸可分解为H ₂和CO ₂，显着促进糠醇氢解为2-甲基呋喃。最后，在10％Ni-10％Cu / Al ₂ O ₃上可以获得2-甲基呋喃的100％转化率和92mol％产率。这归因于镍-铜金属的协同作用，并增加了对羰基还原的亲和力。