Recent research advances on catalysts for selective hydrogenation of ethyne

Selectively removing the trace amount of ethyne in ethylene is of great significance for the utilization of ethylene in downstream processing. Selective hydrogenation of ethyne to ethylene is of great potential for large and medium-sized ethylene plants due to its advantages, such as low energy consumption, less environmental pollution, and large treatment capacity. In the reaction of selective hydrogenation of ethyne, catalysts play crucial roles in selectively driving the target reaction while suppressing the occurrence of side reactions. Up to now, a number of catalysts have been designed for selective hydrogenation of ethyne, which could roughly be divided into Pd-based catalysts, Ni-based catalysts, IB metal-based catalysts, bimetallic/trimetallic catalysts, and others, according to the nature of the active centers. Herein, the recent progress of these categories of catalysts in selective hydrogenation of ethyne is summarized and the underlying reaction mechanism is unraveled, targeting design of better catalysts for selective hydrogenation of ethyne and advancing this research field.