ZnO Nanoclusters Supported on Dealuminated Zeolite β as a Novel Catalyst for Direct Dehydrogenation of Propane to Propylene

Abstract

Abstract Small ZnO nanoclusters supported on dealuminated β zeolite were prepared and evaluated for catalyzing direct dehydrogenation of propane to propylene (PDH), exhibiting high catalytic performance. N 2 sorption, XRD, TEM, 27 Al and 28 Si MAS NMR, IR, XRF, DR UV‐vis, XPS, and NH 3 ‐TPD techniques were employed to characterize the physicochemical properties of this novel catalyst system. It is found that the Zn species can be accommodated in the vacant T‐atom sites of dealuminated β zeolite due to the reaction of aqueous zinc acetate solution with silanol groups, and thus, producing massive small ZnO nanoclusters as active phases in PDH. Additionally, dealuminated β zeolite can greatly depress side reactions attributable to the absence of strong acid sites, thereby guaranteeing high catalytic activity, propylene selectivity and stability. As a result, the optimal catalyst of 10 wt % Zn loaded on dealuminated β zeolite exhibits a high initial propane conversion of around 53 % and a superior propylene selectivity of about 93 % at a space velocity of 4000 cm 3 g cat −1 h −1 , together with the high stability and satisfactory reusability. This study may open a new way to design and synthesize highly active PDH catalysts with high selectivity and stability.