Oxidation of Glyoxal to Glyoxalic Acid by Prepared Nano-Au/C Catalysts

Nano-Au/C catalysts were prepared by loading the gold nanoparticles which were prepared by photochemical reduction method to the activated carbon. They were used for the catalytic oxidation reaction of glyoxal into glyoxylic acid. The influence of temperature and pH on the catalytic activity, and the mechanism of Au/C catalyst on catalytic oxidation of glyoxal were discussed. The amount ratio of Au: glyoxal is 1:1000; The pH of solution can be controlled between 8.2 to 8.4 by using 1.00 mol/L NaOH solution under 45°. Activity of the catalyst slowly decreased after 14 runs.