Kinetics of the liquid-phase hydrogenation of aromatic nitro-compounds in the presence of tungsten carbide catalyst

Abstract

The kinetics of liquid-phase hydrogenation of aromatic nitro-compounds have been studied in the presence of tungsten carbide catalyst. The effects of temperature and hydrogen partial pressure on the hydrogenation rate have been investigated. It has been shown that the addition (deposition) of small amounts of noble metals (100–1000 p.p.m.) results in a significant increase in the catalytic activity of tungsten carbide. From a comparison of our results with those for electrochemical oxidation of hydrogen at tungsten carbide electrodes it may be assumed that the rate determining step of hydrogenation is the activation (dissociative adsorption) of hydrogen.