Highly Selective Acetylene Semihydrogenation Catalyzed by Cu Nanoparticles Supported in a Metal–Organic Framework

We describe herein the highly selective semihydrogenation of acetylene to ethylene using a Zr-based metal–organic framework (MOF; NU-1000) with Cu–oxo clusters present on the nodes as precatalysts. The active form of the catalyst is MOF-supported Cu nanoparticles generated in situ upon a brief H2 reduction treatment at 200 °C. This composite material is stable for many catalytic cycles and effectively avoids overreduction to ethane, a common problem for many semihydrogenation catalysts.