Enhancing the selectivity of the hydrogenation of naphthalene to tetralin by high temperature water

Enhancing selectivity and an efficient use of feedstocks in chemical reactions using greener methods is an important aspect of green chemistry. In this work, we conducted the hydrogenation of naphthalene to produce tetralin catalyzed by a cheap Fe–Mo based catalyst with and without high temperature water (HTW). The effects of various factors on the reaction, such as density of water, reaction temperature, reaction time and amounts of catalyst, were investigated. It was demonstrated that the addition of water could increase the yield of tetralin and suppress formation of coke effectively. The reaction in the presence of D2O indicated that H/D exchange occurred during the reaction process.