Rake mechanism for the deoxygenation of ethanol over a supported Ni2P/SiO2 catalyst

• Published in: Journal of catalysis Vol. 290; pp. 1 - 12
• Main Authors: Li, D., Bui, P., Zhao, H.Y., Oyama, S.T., Dou, T., Shen, Z.H.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier Inc 01.06.2012; Elsevier; Elsevier BV
• Subjects: acetaldehyde; adsorption; ammonia; Catalysis; catalysts; catalytic activity; Chemistry; dehydrogenation; Ethanol; Ethanol deoxygenation; ethylene; Exact sciences and technology; Fourier transforms; General and physical chemistry; hydrogenation; HZSM-5; In situ FTIR; Ion-exchange; Kinetic simulation; Kinetics; Ni2P/SiO2; oxidation; Rake mechanism; Surface physical chemistry; Theory of reactions, general kinetics. Catalysis. Nomenclature, chemical documentation, computer chemistry; yields; Zeolites: preparations and properties; Ni2P/SiO2; Kinetic simulation; HZSM-5; Rake mechanism; In situ FTIR; Ethanol deoxygenation; Binary compound; Support; Adsorption site; In situ; Ethylene; Alcohol; Hydrogenation; Silica; Supported catalyst; Mechanism; Acetaldehyde; Catalytic conversion; Chemical reduction; Sequential; Deoxygenation; Alkanol; Oxidation; Ni; Chemisorption; Catalytic reaction; Ethanol; P/SiO; Steady state; Base; Infrared spectrometry; Ammonia; Heterogeneous catalysis; Acids; Simulation; Dehydrogenation; Silicon oxides; Kinetics
• ISSN: 0021-9517; 1090-2694
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jcat.2012.02.001

The catalytic deoxygenation of ethanol was studied on a metallic Ni2P/SiO2 catalyst. Contact time experiments indicated that for Ni2P, acetaldehyde was a primary product and ethylene was a secondary product. This was a result of the formation of a surface intermediate that could desorb as acetaldehyde or react further to produce ethylene. This rake-type mechanism was supported by a simulation of the reaction sequence and in situ Fourier transform infrared measurements. CH3CH2OH→CH3CHO→CH2CH2 [Display omitted] ► The catalytic deoxygenation of ethanol was studied on a Ni2P/SiO2 catalyst. ► Acetaldehyde was a primary product and ethylene a secondary product. ► The reaction proceeded by a rake mechanism involving a series of surface intermediates. ► In situ FTIR and a kinetic simulation supported the proposed mechanism. The catalytic conversion of ethanol was studied on a metallic Ni2P/SiO2 catalyst, and comparison was made with an acidic HZSM-5 catalyst. Chemisorption probes indicated that the Ni2P had substantial CO adsorption sites (134μmolg−1), while the HZSM-5 catalyst had large quantities of NH3 adsorption sites (565μmolg−1). The catalytic activity in ethanol deoxygenation of the Ni2P/SiO2 was higher than that of the HZSM-5 catalyst on the basis of these chemisorptions sites. In steady-state catalysis, contact time experiments indicated that for Ni2P, acetaldehyde was a primary product and ethylene was a secondary product. However, this was not the result of a sequential oxidation reaction followed by a reduction process, but rather, it was due to the formation of a surface intermediate that could desorb as acetaldehyde or react further to produce ethylene. This rake-type mechanism was supported by a simulation of the reaction sequence that produced good agreement with the experimentally determined acetaldehyde and ethylene yields. The mechanism was also supported by in situ Fourier transform infrared measurements, which revealed the presence of signals compatible with adsorbed acetaldehyde, the likely surface intermediate species involved in the reaction. The present studies indicate that the reactions of alcohols on metallic catalysts like Ni2P involve dehydrogenation/hydrogenation steps, rather than simple acid/base-catalyzed dehydration steps as occur in HZSM-5.