The selective hydrogenation of
trans-4-phenyl-3-butene-2-one over Ru/γ-Al
2O
3 stabilized with triphenylphosphine was investigated in the presence of diamine and base. It was found that 1,2-diphenylethylene-1,2-diamine (DPEN) was the best modifier among the investigated diamines. Both DPEN and KOH not only promoted the selectivity of the C
![]()
O bond hydrogenation, but also accelerated the rate of the hydrogenation. Under the optimum conditions: the reaction temperature of 35 °C, H
2 pressure of 4.0 MPa, KOH concentration of 0.04 mol/l, and reaction time of 3 h, the conversion of
trans-4-phenyl-3-butene-2-one was close to 100 % and the selectivity to unsaturated alcohol was more than 99 % . In combining with the effect of reaction factors on the hydrogenation, a possible hydrogenation mechanism is proposed.
