Copper Single‐Atom Decorated Microfibrous Catalysts for Continuous‐Flow Reduction of Nitroarenes

Abstract

Continuous‐flow fixed‐bed reactors effectively bridge laboratory research and industrial production. As the key component, the catalyst module must demonstrate high catalytic activity and rapid reactant distribution to maximize the catalytic turnover. Herein, a facile strategy is proposed to fabricate a microfibrous catalyst by decorating Cu single atoms (Cu1) on composite microfiber (CMF) made from N‐doped holey graphene (NHG) and regenerated cellulose of waste paper. Benefiting from the high density of atomic metal species, maximized utilization of active sites, strong metal‐support interactions, and fibrous morphology with adjustable packing density, such a CMF‐supported Cu single‐atom catalyst (Cu1/CMF) displayed a benchmarking processing capacity of 1.92 mmol mgcat−1 h−1 and superior durability (≥ 25 cycles) for catalytic reduction of nitroarenes, surpassing the reported catalysts. This work opens new possibilities for continuous‐flow catalysis in organic transformations in a greener and more sustainable way.