Oxidative dehydrogenation of propane to propene, 1: Kinetic study on V/MgO

The reaction kinetics of the oxidative dehydrogenation of propane to propene over a V/MgO catalyst were studied. Both propane and propene oxidation kinetics were measured independently to quantify the rates of the parallel and consecutive reactions to propene and carbon oxides. Specific experiments to evaluate reaction products effects showed that water inhibited reaction rates but co‐feeding CO₂ or propene had no measurable effect on selectivity or conversion. Kinetic data generated under integral reactor conditions and over an inert membrane reactor have also been used to estimate the kinetic parameters. Selectivity decreased as the oxygen partial pressure increased; however, propene yield was relatively insensitive to oxygen concentration. A dual site Mars‐van Krevelen model characterizes the reaction kinetics well. The role of lattice oxygen was established by alternating pulses of propane and oxygen. This redox model is able to predict the experimental tendencies observed in the three types of reactor studied.