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Abstract

Many forms of polymers have been prepared and studied as polymeric catalyst support for metal nanoparticles and solid acid catalysts. The nanocasted mesoporous polydivinylbenzene (PDVB)-supported platinum catalysts presented here are distinguished by their customized mesoporosity and bulk morphology that are comparable to typical carbon- and alumina-supported powdered catalysts. Platinum nanoparticles are deposited on PDVB at loadings between 1 wt% and 9 wt% and a mean size between 2.7 nm and 6.2 nm, dependent on the synthesis method. Bifunctional catalysts containing platinum and acidic functionality are prepared by gas-phase sulfonation of the Pt/PDVB catalysts. The PDVB-supported catalysts are active for the oxidation of ethanol with molecular oxygen in water with up to 94% yield of acetic acid. In the analogous oxidation of glycerol, up to 60% yield of glyceric acid is reached with the bifunctional catalyst, and the polymer-supported catalysts feature lower formation of unidentified side products than Pt/C and Pt/Al₂O₃. Altogether, we find the polymers to be more active than the alumina and more selective than the carbon supports and thus overall have optimized performance.