“…11−13 These reactions have conventionally been promoted by homogeneous base catalysts such as NaOH or KOH; however, these catalysts cannot be readily separated from the reaction mixture and are difficult to dispose of. 14,15 We have recently shown that calcined hydrotalcite, HT, is an active and highly selective heterogeneous catalyst for the self-and crosscondensation of biomass-derived C 4 −C 11 methyl ketones to produce cyclic enones, which upon subsequent hydrodeoxygenation produce cyclic alkanes that have properties making them suitable for aviation fuel and lubricants. 6,13,16,17 Hydrotalcite-type layered double hydroxides (LDHs) are inorganic compounds with the chemical composition M 2+ 1−x M 3+ x (OH) 2 (A x/n ) n-·yH 2 O, where M 2+ and M 3+ are divalent and trivalent metal cations, x is the molar ratio of the trivalent cation [M 3+ /(M 2+ + M 3+ )] which can be varied between 17 and 33%, and A n− is an anion with charge n, most often a carbonate ion.…”