Hydrogenation of carbon monoxide over nickel zeolite catalysts — effect of reduction and calcination

NiNaY zeolite catalysts were prepared by successive ion exchange of NaY. The catalysts were characterized for BET surface area, nickel metal area, nickel crystallite size and crystallinity. The methanation of carbon monoxide was studied in a fixed bed reactor in the temperature range of 523–673 K. Specific activities for methanation were found to vary with nickel concentration and crystallite size. The values of nickel metal area and specific methanation activity for the uncalcined catalysts were found to be higher compared to those of calcined catalysts. The effect of reduction at 723 K on the zeolite base structure and the effects of calcining the catalyst on metal area, crystallite size and activity are discussed.     

Fluidizable catalyst for methane reforming

Fluidizable catalysts are developed in this study for advancing an integral approach towards a new methane reforming process. With this end, catalysts constituted by nickel supported on -alumina, NaY, and USY were developed using the incipient wetness technique producing bulk nickel loadings in the 0–20 wt.% range. These catalysts were also tested under relevant conditions for industrial operation in a novel Riser Simulator. It was found that, for the case of ‘dry’ reforming of methane, nickel deposited in zeolites is a promising catalyst given that it allows for close control of metal dispersion–redispersion process. In fact, when this catalyst was exposed to repeated oxidation and reduction cycles, nickel dispersions remained stable at 25% for NaY zeolite and at 15% for USY zeolite. This catalyst offers, however, limited application for steam reforming of methane given the potential collapse of the zeolite structure under steam atmosphere. As an alternative and for cases where steam reforming of methane is preferred, nickel on -alumina catalyst was considered. In these cases, optimum catalytic activity was achieved with 2.5 wt.% of nickel on -alumina with 3–6% nickel dispersion.     

Nickel crystallite size and net activity of hydrogenation catalysts

Among supported nickel-based hydrogenation catalysts, the Ni crystallite size apparently plays a secondary role in net hydrogenation activity for undistilled tallow fatty acids and nonselective hydro-genation of oxidized soybean oil. The nickel crystal-lite size measured by the x-ray diffraction profile broadening technique of Scherrer varied between 55 A and 150 A. The commercial catalyst with the small-est nickel crystallite size, in the samples studied, was not the most active for hardening soybean oil, while fatty acid hydrogenation showed a large crystallite catalyst to have the highest activity. Since the percent reduced nickel used in catalytic hydrogenation is not well known if the Ni/NiO ratio is poorly defined, relative activities were then correlated with qualita-tive x-ray diffraction measurements of the Ni/NiO values. Again, there was no trend in activity as a func-tion of Ni/NiO. This apparent puzzle is probably due to real differences in the micro structure of the catalyst support. A series of experimental reductions using a common green catalyst led to very good cor-relations between net activity for fatty acid hydro-genation and the crystallite size and Ni/NiO ratio. On a given support, the crystallite dimension can be modified by the reduction treatment and is not sharply fixed by the selection of nickel salt and sup-port. If the stoichiometric ratio of hydrogen is lowered, the crystallite dimension is reduced, but so is the qualitative efficiency of reduction (Ni/NiO), with the result that an exceptionally small crystallite size catalyst may be less active than one with larger crystals, but with more reduced Ni/unit weight.     

载体二氧化钛的晶型对对硝基苯酚加氢催化剂Ni/TiO2的影响

The catalytic hydrogenation ofp-nitrophenol to p-aminophenol was investigated over Ni/TiO2 catalysts prepared by a liquid-phase chemical reduction method. The catalysts were characterized by inductively coupled plasma （ICP）, X-ray powder diffraction （XRD）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, X-ray photoelectron spectra （XPS） and temperature-programmed reduction （TPR）. Results show that the titania structure has favorable influence on physio-chemical and catalytic properties of Ni/TiO2 catalysts. Compared to commercial Raney nickel, the catalytic activity of Ni/TiO2 catalyst is much superior, irrespective of the titania structure. The catalytic activity of anatase titania supported nickel catalyst Ni/TiO2（A） is higher than that of rutile titania supported nickel catalyst Ni/TiO2（R）, possibly because the reduction of nickel oxide to metallic nickel for Ni/TiO2（A） is easier than that for Ni/TiO2（R） at similar reaction conditions.     

Hydrodechlorination of 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene over niobia supported nickel catalysts

A series of nickel (2–15 wt%) catalysts supported on niobia were prepared. Their catalytic efficiency in the vapour phase hydrodechlorination of 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene was studied. The catalyst samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), temperature programmed reduction (TPR) and hydrogen chemisorption methods. Hydrogen chemisorption studies suggest that the hydrogen spillover culminates at 6 wt% of Ni/Nb₂O₅. The partial hydrodechlorination ability of 6 wt% Ni/Nb₂O₅ was also found to be the highest. Niobia supported nickel catalysts were found to be highly active for the partial hydrodechlorination of 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene. It was also found that the catalytic properties are related to dispersion of nickel on niobium oxide.     

氧化镧助剂对镍/二氧化硅催化剂结构和加氢性能的影响

采用等体积浸渍法制备了La₂O₃改性的Ni/SiO₂催化剂,考察了La₂O₃的引入方法对Ni/SiO₂催化剂催化间二硝基苯加氢制间苯二胺反应性能的影响,并采用XRD、TPR和XPS等表征技术对催化剂的物化性质进行了研究.结果表明,La₂O₃的添加顺序对Ni/SiO₂催化剂的物化性质和加氢性能影响非常明显.当镧以先于镍浸渍方式引入时,将大大削弱载体与镍物种之间的相互作用,镍晶粒度变小,分散度增加,催化剂的活性显著提高,间二硝基苯转化率和间苯二胺收率分别达到97.1%和93.5%.在以镍和镧共浸方式制备的催化剂中,La₂O₃的存在也使Ni/SiO₂催化剂的反应性能有所改善,但效果没有镧先于镍浸渍方式突出.当以先浸镍后浸镧的方式加入助剂时,催化剂中的镍晶粒增大,分散性变差,催化剂的活性大幅度下降.     

Characterization and activity of copper and nickel catalysts for the oxidation of phenol aqueous solutions

Catalysts based on CuO/γ-alumina, CuAl₂O₄/γ-alumina, NiO/γ-alumina, NiAl₂O₄/γ-alumina and bulk CuAl₂O₄ have been structurally characterized by BET, porosimetry, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Their catalytic behaviors have also been tested for the oxidation of 5 g/l phenol aqueous solutions using a triphasic tubular reactor working in a trickle-bed regime and air with an oxygen partial pressure of 0.9 MPa at a temperature of 413 K. The copper and nickel catalysts supported on γ-alumina have surface areas of the same order as the support γ-alumina of ca. 190 m²/g and high active phase dispersions which were also confirmed by SEM, whereas the bulk copper aluminate spinel has a surface area of ca. 30 m²/g. XRD detects the phases present and shows a continuous loss of CuO by elution and the formation of a copper oxalate phase on the surface of the copper catalysts which also elutes with time. The NiO was also eluted but less than the copper catalysts. Only the copper and nickel spinel catalysts were stable throughout the reaction. Phenol conversion vs. time shows a continuous overall decrease in activity for the CuO/γ-alumina and NiO/γ-alumina catalysts. In turn, the copper and nickel spinel catalysts reach steady activity plateaus of 40 and 10%, respectively, of phenol conversion. The bulk copper aluminate spinel shows an activity plateau of 20% of the conversion which is lower than that from the copper aluminate/γ-alumina catalyst due to its lower surface area. Nickel catalysts always have lower activities than the copper catalysts for the phenol oxidation reaction. The copper catalysts drive a mechanism of partial phenol oxidation to carboxylic acids and quinone-related products with very high specific rates, and the nickel catalysts mainly drive a mechanism of CO₂ formation with lower conversion but with a potential higher catalyst life. The triphasic tubular reactor using trickle-bed regime largely avoids the mechanism of polymer formation as a catalyst deactivation process.     

Characterization and methanation activity of supported nickel catalysts

The methanation of carbon monoxide was studied over various supported nickel catalysts in a fixed bed reactor in the temperature range of 250 to 400°C. The hydrogen to carbon monoxide ratio was kept higher than stoichiometric in order to avoid carbon formation. The catalyst particles had an average diameter of 80 pm and nickel contents ranging from 5 to 42 wt %. The performance of laboratory prepared catalysts was compared with commercial ones. The catalysts were characterized by BET surface area, pore volume and carbon monoxide chemisorption. Specific activities for the methanation reaction were obtained and were found to vary with nickel concentration and with crystallite size. There exists a crystallite size range in which the maximum activity was observed. Metal support interactions may also contribute to the vdation in specific activity. The activation energy was found to vary from 58.2 MJ/kmol to 119.4 MJ/kmol. It appears that the methanation reaction over Ni/aIumina catalysts is a structure sensitive reaction. A compensation effect was observed for this reaction.     

Supported nickel catalyst from hydroxycarbonate of nickel and aluminium

The hydroxycarbonate of nickel and aluminium (Ni/ Al = 3) with a hydrotalcite-like structure is an outstanding precursor of the active component of supported nickel catalysts. Good mechanical strength and suitable nickel content of these catalysts, which are necessary for practical applications, can be achieved by mechanical mixing of this compound with an additional support. The catalyst prepared from a mixture of 56.5 wt-% of nickel-aluminium hydroxycarbonate and 43.5 wt-% of γ-alumina was proven to have a stable catalytic activity in the methanation reaction at 2 MPa and 800 K.     

Application of Novel Zeolite Y Nanoparticles in Catalytic Cracking Reactions

The cracking activity of a fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) catalyst containing novel zeolite Y nanoparticles fabricated using mesoporous silica (average particle size of 150 nm) was examined and compared with the performance of other catalysts. The activity experiments were carried out in a fluidized bench-scale batch riser simulator reactor. The bulky probing compound of 1,3,5-triisopropylbenzene (TIPB) was cracked to lighter compounds over a catalyst containing 25% of the developed zeolite. The synthesized sodium-type zeolite nanoparticles were subjected to two cycles of ion-exchange treatment using ammonium sulfate and lanthanum chloride and then to calcination. To investigate the effects of particle size on the activity, three additional catalysts were prepared with the mean particle size of the supported zeolites ranging from 450 to 1800 nm. The preparation of the FCC catalysts was conducted by mixing the highly aqueous dispersed zeolite Y nanoparticles with colloidal silica–alumina as a matrix and silica sol as a binder. The results of the catalytic cracking of TIPB demonstrated the significant effect of the size reduction of the synthesized zeolite Y nanoparticles on the catalytic performance of the catalyst. The FCC catalyst that contained zeolite Y nanoparticles (150 nm) showed superior conversion and selectivity percentages for the main products. The results of this study have a direct implication on the preparation of colloidal catalysts containing zeolite Y nanoparticles, which form stable emulsion with petroleum products. These emulsions can be utilized for slurry and ebullated bed reactors in heavy oil upgrading applications.     

EFFECT OF ZEOLITE CRYSTALLITE SIZE ON Pt/KL CATALYSTS USED FOR THE AROMATIZATION OF n-OCTANE

The effects of varying zeolite crystallite size in n-octane aromatization over Pt/KL have been studied on a series of catalysts. Various KL zeolites were synthesized via microwave-hydrothermal treatment, which allows for good control of crystallite morphology. Zeolites with different crystallite sizes were prepared by varying aging time (17-24 h), amount of barium (0-445 ppm), and seeding (0-8 wt%). The results showed that higher aging time resulted in smaller zeolite crystallite size, whereas the addition of barium resulted in larger crystallite size. Moreover, the addition of seeding reduced the crystallite size from 1.47 to 0.94 μm. Pt supported on different zeolite catalysts (Pt/KL) was prepared by vapor phase impregnation (VPI). The fresh catalysts were characterized by DRIFTS of adsorbed CO and volumetric hydrogen chemisorption. The results indicated that Pt clusters are well dispersed inside the zeolite channel in all the catalysts prepared. The aromatization of n-octane was tested on the different catalysts at 500°C and atmospheric pressure. It was found that the catalytic activity of all catalysts dropped rapidly after about 200 min on stream due to coke plugging inside the pore of the KL zeolite. It was also observed that less ethylbenzene (EB) and o-xylene (OX) were obtained as the conversion increased because both EB and OX are converted to smaller molecules such as benzene, toluene, etc., by secondary hydrogenolysis. Furthermore, the EB/OX ratio increases with zeolite crystallite size due to an enhanced preferential conversion of the larger OX molecules compared to the narrower EB as their path through the pores is restricted.     

EFFECT OF ZEOLITE CRYSTALLITE SIZE ON Pt/KL CATALYSTS USED FOR THE AROMATIZATION OF n-OCTANE

The effects of varying zeolite crystallite size in n-octane aromatization over Pt/KL have been studied on a series of catalysts. Various KL zeolites were synthesized via microwave-hydrothermal treatment, which allows for good control of crystallite morphology. Zeolites with different crystallite sizes were prepared by varying aging time (17–24 h), amount of barium (0–445 ppm), and seeding (0–8 wt%). The results showed that higher aging time resulted in smaller zeolite crystallite size, whereas the addition of barium resulted in larger crystallite size. Moreover, the addition of seeding reduced the crystallite size from 1.47 to 0.94 μm. Pt supported on different zeolite catalysts (Pt/KL) was prepared by vapor phase impregnation (VPI). The fresh catalysts were characterized by DRIFTS of adsorbed CO and volumetric hydrogen chemisorption. The results indicated that Pt clusters are well dispersed inside the zeolite channel in all the catalysts prepared. The aromatization of n-octane was tested on the different catalysts at 500°C and atmospheric pressure. It was found that the catalytic activity of all catalysts dropped rapidly after about 200 min on stream due to coke plugging inside the pore of the KL zeolite. It was also observed that less ethylbenzene (EB) and o-xylene (OX) were obtained as the conversion increased because both EB and OX are converted to smaller molecules such as benzene, toluene, etc., by secondary hydrogenolysis. Furthermore, the EB/OX ratio increases with zeolite crystallite size due to an enhanced preferential conversion of the larger OX molecules compared to the narrower EB as their path through the pores is restricted.     

Ni/SiO2催化剂的制备条件对催化间二硝基苯加氢反应性能的影响

将Ni/SiO₂催化剂应用于间二硝基苯加氢反应中,考察了该催化剂制备过程中焙烧温度和还原温度对其催化性能的影响,并通过BET、XRD、TEM、TPR等方法对催化剂进行了表征.结果表明,在实验研究范围内,随着焙烧温度的提高,Ni/SiO₂催化剂比表面积降低,NiO与载体SiO₂之间的相互作用逐渐增强,催化剂的还原温度明显提高,活性组分Ni的晶粒度增大,焙烧温度为773 K时催化剂具有最佳的催化反应性能,此时活性组分Ni以高分散状态存在.催化剂的还原温度对Ni/SiO₂催化剂的结构和催化性能影响显著,当还原温度较低时,活性组分还原不完全,催化剂活性较低;而还原温度太高会使活性组分烧结,导致催化剂活性明显降低;还原温度为723 K时催化剂表现出最佳的活性和选择性.     

Compensation effect and its use in catalyst correlations

Catalysts of varying surface properties (e.g. surface area, pore volume and crystallite size) and of varying bulk properties (e.g. metallic radius, heat of formation of oxide and percentage d-character) were evaluated as catalysts for the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide. Surface properties were varied by studying the following catalysts: unsupported nickel oxide, nickel oxide/α-alumina, nickel oxide/α-alumina and nickel oxide/silica-alumina. The bulk properties were varied by studying the oxide catalysts of different metals such as nickel, chromium, mangenese, cobalt and palladium. The results obtained from this work along with the data obtained from a search of the literature, were correlated using a compensation plot (linear relationship between the activation energy and the logarithm of the frequency factor). General correlations for bulk properties and catalytic activities are presented for the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide. The use of a “Compensation Effect” for the hydrogenation of ethylene is also discussed.     

Study of chromia alumia catalysts

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of increasing chromium concentration on the activity and physical properties of chromia/alumina catalysts. The catalysts were prepared by impregnating η-alumina support in various concentrations of chromic acid solution and were finally calcined in air. A variety of physical-chemical properties of the catalysts were studied. These included BET surface area, pore volume, metal concentration, x-ray diffraction studies, oxidation states using EPR, surface oxidation (excess oxygen) measurement by iodometric titration, metal area measurement and crystallite size determination. Decomposition of hydrogen peroxide was used to determine the activity of various catalysts. A correlation of catalytic activity with crystallite size indicated that both, activity per unit chromia area and activity per g of catalyst were maximum at a crystallite size of 3.7 mm. Also, the activity per unit chromia area is maximum when chromia is deposited 3-4 layers thick. In contradiction to the view put forth in the literature, this study indicates (on the basis of excess oxygen and chemisorption measurement) that not only is all of the top chromium oxidized to Cr⁶ but that the oxidation also takes place in the sub-surface layer(s).     

载体对镍催化剂催化间二硝基苯加氢制间苯二胺反应性能的影响

The hydrogenation of m-dinitrobenzene to m-phenylenediamine in liquid phase was studied with the nickel catalysts supported on SiO2, TiO2, γ-Al2O3, MgO and diatomite carders. Based on the experiments of X-ray diffraction （XRD）, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS）, temperature-programmed reduction （TPR）, temperature-programmed desorption of hydrogen （H2-TPD） and activity evaluation, the physico-chemical and catalytic properties of the catalysts were investigated. Among the catalysts tested, the SiO2 supported nickel catalyst showed the highest activity and selectivity towards m-phenylenediamine, over which 97.3% m-dinitrobenzene conversion and 95.1% m-phenylenediamine yield were obtained at 373K under hydrogen pressure of 2.6MPa after reaction for 6 h when using ethanol as solvent. Although TiO2 and diatomite supported nickel catalysts also presented high activity, they had lower selectivity towards m-phenylenediamine. As for γ-Al2O3 and MgO supported catalysts were almost inactive for the object reaction. It was shown that both the activity and selectivity of the catalysts were strongly depended on the interaction between nickel and the support. The higher activities of Ni/SiO2, Ni/TiO2 and Ni/diatomite could be attributed to the weaker metal-support interaction, on which Ni species presented as crystallized Ni metal particles. On the other hand, there existed strong metal-support interaction in Ni/MgO and Ni γ-Al2O3, which causes these catalysts more difficult to be reduced and the availability of Ni active sites decreased, resulting in their low catalytic activity.     

CO<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>-free hydrogen and carbon nanofibers production by methane decomposition over nickel-alumina catalysts

Nickel catalysts supported on mesoporous nanocrystalline gamma alumina with various nickel loadings were prepared and employed for thermocatalytic decomposition of methane into CO _x -free hydrogen and carbon nanofibers. The prepared catalysts with different nickel contents exhibited mesoporous structure with high surface area in the range of 121.3 to 66.2m²g^?1. Increasing in nickel content decreased the pore volume and increased the crystallite size. The catalytic results revealed that the nickel content and operating temperature both play important roles on the catalytic performance of the prepared catalysts. The results showed that increasing in reaction temperature increased the initial conversion of catalysts and significantly decreased the catalyst lifetime. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis of the spent catalysts evaluated at different temperatures revealed the formation of intertwined carbon filaments. The results showed that increasing in reaction temperature decreased the diameters of nanofibers and increased the formation of encapsulating carbon.     

The role of nickel in hydrodesulphurisation catalysts

The acidity and activity of promoted (with NiO) and unpromoted MoO₃/A1₂O3 catalysts were studied by ammonia adsorption, titration using acid/base colour indicators, and thiophene hydrodesulphurisation. The incorporation of nickel into supported MoO₃ produced significant changes in activity, which was attributed to changes in the number and strength of the acid sites. Specifically, the nickel decreased the concentration of highly acid sites and increased the number of sites with intermediate acidity in the oxide catalyst. At the same time, the nickel markedly increased the steady state catalytic activity but decreased the initial activity. Carbon and sulphur analyses, as well as acid site concentration of used catalysts, suggest that this behaviour may be associated with modifications brought about by nickel on MoS₂ crystallite growth and on deactivation by carbon deposition. These suggestions are found to be consistent with other effects attributed to the promoter, such as hydrogen spill-over and p-semiconductivity.     

Partial oxidation of butane to syngas using nano-structure Ni/zeolite catalysts

In this study, performance of nano-structure Ni over different zeolite supports in partial oxidation of butane was investigated. First, partial oxidation process was performed without catalyst to evaluation of optimal conditions. For in situ reduction of catalysts, H₂ produced from homogenous reaction was used. Catalytic partial oxidation was carried out using nano-structure nickel catalysts supported by ZSM5, mordenite and Y. Each catalyst was synthesized through reverse microemulsion method. The catalysts were characterized by BET surface area, XRD, SEM and TGA. Highest butane conversion (≈89%) observed in the presence of Ni/Y catalyst. Also Ni/Y shows the highest overall selectivity to CO and H₂ as the most desired partial oxidation products. Results from TGA showed that the minimum quantity of formatted coke was related to Ni/Y, which confirmed the stability of butane conversion versus time for this catalyst.     

Investigation on the textural characteristics of supported nickel hydrogenation catalysts

Nickel catalysts supported on a range of carriers such as kieselguhr, silica, γ-alumina, silica-alumina and mordenite were investigated in order to gain an understanding of their structural properties. The surface area and pore distribution characteristics of the carriers and unreduced catalysts obtained from nitrogen adsorption isotherms gave strong indications that the formation of the nickel salt submerged the carrier. Metallic nickel produced after reduction at high temperature was perhaps present in the macropores or on the outer surface of the carrier forming a microporous network of fine crystallites. The metal surface area of the catalyst in its reduced state, calculated from hydrogen chemisorption data, was not influenced by the specific surface area of the carrier. Among the different carriers, the nickel-carrier interaction was mainly found with kieselguhr and silica. Activity of the different catalysts in the hydrogenation of unsaturated fatty acid was found to be directly related to the metal area.