Data for: Preparation of Ni, CoO-supported halloysite nanotubes catalyst and its application in hydrogenation of furfural to furfuryl alcohol

In this study, the halloysite (Hal) nanotubes were designed as carrier and stabilizer to act a nanostructured matrix and a series of Ni, CoO-Hal catalysts have been synthesized through a deposition method. The prepared catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Transmission electron micrograph (TEM). The catalytic properties of prepared catalyst were evaluated using the hydrogenation of furfural to furfuryl alcohol. The average pore size of activated Hal ranged from 20 nm to 32 nm, and the specific surface areas of Hal increased up to 125.55 m2/g. The Ni or CoO particles were successfully loaded on the external surface of Hal nanotubes with the diameters approximately at 10 nm. The XPS data confirm zero-valent character for metal Ni at 852.6 eV and the oxide form for metal Co with type of CoO and Co3O4, meanwhile, a small amount of nickel protoxide due to the weak oxidation on the surface of metal Ni was observed. The evaluation of catalytic activities showed that the Ni-Hal catalyst presented favorable selectivity to furfural alcohol (approximately at 99.0 %) and well furfural conversion. The successive catalytic cycles indicated that the furfural conversion and selectivity to furfural alcohol of the prepared catalyst maintained whole stability (approximately at 96 % and 65 %, respectively).