Comparison between tungsten carbide and molybdenum carbide for the hydrodenitrogenation of carbazole

The activity of molybdenum and tungsten carbides in hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) of carbazole was studied. Transition metal carbides (Mo₂C and W₂C) were synthesized using the temperature-programmed reaction of the appropriate oxide precursor (MoO₃ and WO₃) with the following gas mixture: 10 vol.% CH₄/H₂. The structure of the catalysts was characterized using X-ray diffraction, CO chemisorption, high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and BET surface area measurements. From the HRTEM analysis, it could be concluded that the tungsten carbide was thioresistant in our operating conditions (50 ppm of S, pressure = 6 MPa, 553 < T < 653 K, H₂/feed volumic ratio = 600). In the case of Mo₂C, molybdenum sulphide was observed as single slabs. The activity of catalysts was determined during the hydrodenitrogenation of carbazole at the wide range of temperature (553–653 K) and under a 6 MPa total pressure of H₂. The comparison of tungsten carbide and molybdenum carbide has shown higher activity of Mo₂C than W₂C at the same condition. However, W₂C leads to higher amount of isomers of main products, and have higher hydrogenation activity.     

Catalytic performances of platinum doped molybdenum carbide for simultaneous hydrodenitrogenation and hydrodesulfurization

The hydrotreating activity of molybdenum carbide doped with platinum (0.3 wt.%) was studied and compared to that of a pure, non-modified Mo₂C. 4,6-Dimethyldibenzothiophene (4,6-DMDBT, 300 ppm of S) and carbazole (100 ppm of N) were designated as model compounds and subjected to hydrodesufurization (HDS) and hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) processes either separately or simultaneously. In both cases the molybdenum carbide doped with platinum (Mo₂C-Pt) turns out to be more active than Mo₂C. The increase of the hydrotreating activity, owing to the presence of platinum in molybdenum carbide can be related to the raise of hydrogenation activity of the modified catalyst. The platinum modified molybdenum carbide was stable (displays a long lifetime) under HDN and HDS reaction conditions. The predominant reaction products are bicyclohexyl (BCH) for the HDN process or 3,3′-dimethylbiphenyl (3,3′-DMBPh) and methylcyclohexyltoluene (MCHT) for the HDS process, respectively.     

Synthesis of nanophase tungsten carbide by electrical discharge machining

Tungsten carbide nanopowders were synthesized successfully by electric discharge machining followed by annealing under a nitrogen atmosphere. The tungsten workpieces were initially melted and evaporated on the working surface during the electric discharge machining process, and then the tungsten powders were reacted with the carbon electrode and the working medium of kerosene to form the nanocrystalline WC_1−x powders. The powders produced were characterized by XRD, SEM, and TEM. When annealing the powders under an N₂ atmosphere, the cubic phases of WC_1−x gradually changed to hexagonal W₂C and then were transformed fully to nanocrystalline hexagonal WC at 1200 °C, with the nanocrystalline tungsten carbide encapsulated in a carbon shell. On the other hand, under an H₂ atmosphere, the WC_1−x phase changed via a W₂C phase to reduced powders of pure tungsten at 1000 °C or were reduced directly from WC_1−x to elemental W.     

Kinetic study of the deep hydrodesulfurization of dibenzothiophene over molybdenum carbide supported on a carbon black composite: Existence of two types of active sites

Hydrodesulfurization (HDS) is part of the hydrotreating process, which is an ensemble of several reactions (HDN, HDO, HDS, etc.) taking place simultaneously at the industrial scale. Only sulfur is currently submitted to drastic Europeans specifications and conventional commercial catalysts cannot reach the specifications at low cost. This paper presents the behavior of a potential substitute catalyst tested for the deep HDS of a model molecule such as the dibenzothiophene (DBT). The substitute is molybdenum carbide supported on a mesoporous carbon black composite of surface area 240 m² g⁻¹. A global kinetic study of the deep HDS of DBT (300 ppm S) was performed at 623 K and 5.0 MPa and a global kinetic model was proposed as well as global rate constants were calculated to obtain theoretical plots of concentration versus contact time to compare with the experimental data. The kinetic model and global kinetic orders were confirmed as an acceptable correlation was found between calculated and experimental data. Furthermore, the determination of the global kinetic orders indicated that two types of active sites must be present on the surface in order to explain the observed results.     

纳米碳纤维/碳毡负载碳化钨和碳氮化钨的肼分解性能

以纳米碳纤维/碳毡(CFF)为载体,分别采用碳热氢气还原法和碳热氨气还原法制备了负载型碳化钨、碳氮化钨整体催化剂,XRD结果表明催化剂的活性相分别为W₂C和WC_xN_y, TEM表征发现其粒子尺寸分别为2～40 nm和2～20 nm。采用1 N肼分解推力器评价了上述催化剂的反应性能,W₂C/CFF和WC_xN_y/CFF表现出了相比于Ir/CFF更好的肼分解综合性能:除了初活性略低以外,启动加速性、稳态燃压以及比活性均高于贵金属Ir催化剂。此外,W₂C/CFF和WC_xN_y/CFF催化剂的稳定性明显优于Ir/CFF,这主要是由于CFF载体在贵金属Ir的作用下发生了更显著的甲烷化反应。     

Hydrodesulfurization over supported monometallic, bimetallic and promoted carbide and nitride catalysts

The preparation of alumina-supported β-Mo₂C, MoC_1−x (x≈0.5), γ-Mo₂N, Co–Mo₂C, Ni₂Mo₃N, Co₃Mo₃N and Co₃Mo₃C catalysts is described and their hydrodesulfurization (HDS) catalytic properties are compared to conventional sulfide catalysts having similar metal loadings. Alumina-supported β-Mo₂C and γ-Mo₂N catalysts (Mo₂C/Al₂O₃ and Mo₂N/Al₂O₃, respectively) are significantly more active than sulfided MoO₃/Al₂O₃ catalysts, and X-ray diffraction, pulsed chemisorption and flow reactor studies of the Mo₂C/Al₂O₃ catalysts indicate that they exhibit strong resistance to deep sulfidation. A model is presented for the active surface of Mo₂C/Al₂O₃ and Mo₂N/Al₂O₃ catalysts in which a thin layer of sulfided Mo exposing a high density of sites forms at the surface of the alumina-supported β-Mo₂C and γ-Mo₂N particles under HDS conditions. Cobalt promoted catalysts, Co–Mo₂C/Al₂O₃, have been found to be substantially more active than conventional sulfided Co–MoO₃/Al₂O₃ catalysts, while requiring less Co to achieve optimal HDS activity than is observed for the sulfide catalysts. Alumina-supported bimetallic nitride and carbide catalysts (Ni₂Mo₃N/Al₂O₃, Co₃Mo₃N/Al₂O₃, Co₃Mo₃C/Al₂O₃), while significantly more active for thiophene HDS than unpromoted Mo nitride and carbide catalysts, are less active than conventional sulfided Ni–Mo and Co–Mo catalysts prepared from the same oxidic precursors.     

碳化钼催化剂的制备及噻吩加氢脱硫性能

以MoO₃为前躯体,CH₄/H₂为还原碳化气,采用自制的程序升温还原碳化反应装置制备出Mo₂C催化剂,并用XRD、BET进行表征.借助原位TG-DTA方法研究了MoO₃在CH₄/H₂气氛中的还原碳化历程和适宜的还原碳化温度.以噻吩/环己烷溶液为模型反应物,采用高压微反-色谱实验装置考察了制备的碳化钼催化剂的噻吩加氢脱硫反应性能.结果表明：程序升温条件下的局部规整反应可提高催化剂的比表面积,且制备的碳化钼催化剂具有较高的噻吩加氢脱硫反应活性,在体积分数为5%的噻吩/环己烷溶液中,反应压力为3.0 MPa,空速为6 h^-1,H₂/原料液体积比500∶1的反应条件下, 370℃时的噻吩转化率达到98%以上,明显高于相应的硫化钼催化剂.还原碳化终温的提高,导致碳化钼催化剂比表面积的减少和表面积炭的增多,进而使其加氢脱硫反应活性降低.MoO₃在CH₄/H₂气氛中的还原碳化历程应为MoO₃→MoO₂→MoO_xC_y→Mo₂C,实验确定的适宜还原碳化温度为675℃.     

Effect of phosphorus addition on the hydrotreating activity of NiMo/Al2O3 carbide catalyst

A series of phosphorus promoted γ-Al₂O₃ supported NiMo carbide catalysts with 0–4.5 wt.% P, 13 wt.% Mo and 2.5 wt.% Ni were synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, pulsed CO chemisorption, BET surface area measurement, X-ray diffraction, near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure, DRIFT spectroscopy of CO adsorption and H₂ temperature programmed reduction. X-ray diffraction patterns and CO uptake showed the P addition to NiMo/γ-Al₂O₃ carbide, increased the dispersion of β-Mo₂C particles. DRIFT spectra of adsorbed CO revealed that P addition to NiMo/γ-Al₂O₃ carbide catalyst not only increases the dispersion of Ni-Mo carbide phase, but also changes the nature of surface active sites. The hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) and hydrodesulfurization (HDS) activities of these P promoted NiMo/γ-Al₂O₃ carbide catalysts were performed in trickle bed reactor using light gas oil (LGO) derived from Athabasca bitumen and model feed containing quinoline and dibenzothiophene at industrial conditions. The P added NiMo/γ-Al₂O₃ carbide catalysts showed enhanced HDN activity compared to the NiMo/γ-Al₂O₃ catalysts with both the feed stocks. The P had almost no influence on the HDS activity of NiMo/γ-Al₂O₃ carbide with LGO and dibenzothiophene. P addition to NiMo/γ-Al₂O₃ carbide accelerated CN bond breaking and thus increased the HDN activity.     

Acid and base characteristics of molybdenum carbide catalysts

The acid and base properties of a high surface area Mo₂C catalyst were characterized using the temperature programmed desorption of CO₂ and NH₃, the decomposition of isopropyl alcohol (IPA) as a test reaction and monitoring changes in the associated rates and product selectivities on the addition of acid and base site poisons. The Mo₂C catalyst was prepared using the temperature programmed reaction method and passivated prior to exposure to air. Prior to carrying out the temperature programmed desorption experiments and reaction rate measurements, the Mo₂C catalyst was reduced in H₂ at 400 °C. Results obtained for the reduced Mo₂C catalyst were compared with those for MgO, HZSM-5 and 1% Pt/SiO₂ catalysts. The study provided evidence for the presence of both acid and base sites on Mo₂C. The base and acid sites on the Mo₂C catalyst were weaker than those on the MgO and HZSM-5 catalysts, respectively. The base and acid sites were likely created as a consequence of charge transfer from molybdenum to carbon.     

WC/MMT纳米复合材料制备及其对PNP的电催化活性

以剥离后的蒙脱石(MMT)为载体,将浸渍法与原位还原技术相结合制备了碳化钨/蒙脱石(WC/MMT)纳米复合材料。采用X射线衍射、扫描电子显微镜和透射电子显微镜等手段对样品进行了表征。结果表明,剥离后蒙脱石的片层厚度为10～15 nm,层间距增大,边缘发生卷曲;复合材料由碳化钨(WC)、碳化二钨(W₂C)和蒙脱石组成,碳化钨颗粒均匀地分布于蒙脱石外表面。采用循环伏安法测试了样品对对硝基苯酚(PNP)的电化学还原性能,结果表明,WC/MMT纳米复合材料对对硝基苯酚具有良好的电催化活性,且具有较好的稳定性。蒙脱石是碳化钨基复合电催化材料良好的载体。     

Use of unsupported and silica supported molybdenum carbide to treat chloroarene gas streams

The gas phase catalytic hydrodechlorination (HDC) of mono- and di-chlorobenzenes (423 K ≤ T ≤ 593 K) over unsupported and silica supported Mo carbide (Mo₂C) is presented as a viable means of detoxifying Cl-containing gas streams for the recovery/reuse of valuable chemical feedstock. The action of Mo₂C/SiO₂ is compared with MoO₃/SiO₂ and Ni/SiO₂ (an established HDC catalyst). The pre- and post-HDC catalyst samples have been characterized in terms of BET area, TG-MS, TPR, TEM, SEM, H₂ chemisorption/TPD and XRD analysis. Molybdenum carbide was prepared via a two step temperature programmed synthesis where MoO₃ was first subjected to a nitridation in NH₃ followed by carbidization in a CH₄/H₂ mixture to yield a face-centred cubic (-Mo₂C) structure characterized by a platelet morphology. Pseudo-first order kinetic analysis was used to obtain chlorobenzene HDC rate constants and the associated temperature dependences yielded apparent activation energies that decreased in the order MoO₃/SiO₂ (80 ± 5 kJ mol⁻¹) ≈ MoO₃ (78 ± 8 kJ mol⁻¹) > Ni/SiO₂ (62 ± 3 kJ mol⁻¹) ≈ -Mo₂C (56 ± 6 kJ mol⁻¹) ≈ -Mo₂C/SiO₂ (53 ± 3 kJ mol⁻¹). HDC activity was lower for the dechlorination of the dichlorobenzene reactants where steric hindrance influenced chloro-isomer reactivity. Supporting -Mo₂C on silica served to elevate HDC performance, but under identical reaction conditions, Ni/SiO₂ consistently delivered a higher initial HDC activity. Nevertheless, the decline in HDC performance with time-on-stream for Ni/SiO₂ was such that activity converged with that of -Mo₂C/SiO₂ after three reaction cycles. A temporal loss of HDC activity (less extreme for the carbides) was observed for each catalyst that was studied and is linked to a disruption to supply of surface active hydrogen as a result of prolonged Cl/catalyst interaction.     

Deep hydrodesulphurization and hydrogenation of diesel fuels on alumina-supported and bulk molybdenum carbide catalysts

Deep hydrodesulphurization (HDS) of diesel fuels has been carried out on P (Ni)-promoted or non-promoted Mo₂C-supported γ-Al₂O₃ and bulk Mo₂C under standard industrial conditions (613 K, 3 MPa). The effect of the promoter was investigated for different feedstocks on HDS and hydrogenation (HYD) with very low levels of sulfur. The temperature effect was also followed. The HDS conversion indicates that phosphorus promoted alumina supported carbide catalysts are as active as a commercial Co-Mo/Al₂O₃ catalyst for low levels of sulfur in the feed. Furthermore, the refractory compounds such as 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene are only transformed on molybdenum carbide catalyst in industrial conditions for hydrotreated gas oils. With gas oils with less than 50 wt ppm in sulfur, phosphorus promoted molybdenum carbide catalysts become more active than commercial catalysts for the HYD of the aromatic compounds and the HDS or the HDN of the feedstock.     

Hydrodesulfurization of dibenzothiophene over supported and unsupported molybdenum carbide catalysts

A series of γ-Al₂O₃ supported molybdenum carbides [carbided Mo/γ-Al₂O₃ (MCS), Co-Mo/γ-Al₂O₃ (CMCS), and Ni-Mo/γ-Al₂O₃ (NMCS)] and unsupported molybdenum carbide (MCUS) were prepared by the temperature-programmed carburization of their corresponding molybdenum nitrides with 20 % CH₄/H₂. XRD and SEM studies show that unsupported molybdenum carbide catalyst possesses a typical crystalline Mo₂C (FCC structure), while supported molybdenum carbide catalysts possess highly dispersed surface molybdenum carbide species on an alumina oxide support. The results of dibenzothiophene (DBT) hydrodesulfurization over molybdenum carbide catalysts show that the reactivity is strongly dependent on the type of catalyst. Supported molybdenum carbide catalysts possess a higher reactivity than the unsupported molybdenum carbide catalyst. In addition, Co or Ni promoted, supported molybdenum carbide catalyst possesses a higher reactivity than the unpromoted, supported molybdenum carbide catalyst. The reactivity, which is also dependent on the reaction conditions, increases with increasing reaction temperature and pressure and contact time. The CO uptakes of the molybdenum carbide catalysts correlate well with overall activity (total rate) for DBT hydrodesulfurization. The major reaction product is biphenyl, with cyclohexylbenzene next in abundance regardless of the type of catalysts and reaction conditions. It was also found that the molybdenum carbide catalysts exhibit stable initial reactivity due to the stable and weak acidic characteristics of these catalysts.     

Group VI transition metal carbides as alternatives in the hydrodechlorination of chlorofluorocarbons

The synthesis of transition metal carbides of tungsten and molybdenum has been carried out via temperature programmed reactions (TPRs) of metal oxides or passivated nitrides. Their specific chloropentafluoroethane conversion rates were at best one order of magnitude less than that of a reference Pd based catalyst. The intrinsic rates range from 4.7 to 14.7 nmol m⁻² s⁻¹ and decrease as follows: Mo₂C>WC>W₂C≈WC_1−x>MoC_1−x. The group VI carbide samples catalyse hydrodehalogenation and dehydrofluorination. WC appears to be as selective towards pentafluoroethane (HFC-125) as the Pd based catalyst. Then the selectivity decreases in the following sequence: W₂C>Mo₂C>WC_1−x>MoC_1−x. All the carbide catalysts deactivate at the early stages of the reaction. Based on the XPS results and the product distribution of the reaction, the deactivation has been mainly attributed to a site blocking phenomenon due to a strong deposit of polymeric carbon and of hydrofluorocarbon polymers. Polymerisation of detected unsaturated compounds take place on acidic sites probably generated by fluoride and/or chloride in the course of the reaction.     

Synthesis and characterization of cobalt–molybdenum bimetallic carbides catalysts

Co₃Mo₃C, Co₆Mo₆C and MCM41-supported Co₃Mo₃C catalyst are prepared by a simple one-step thermal decomposition method without the conventional temperature-programmed carburization. The resultant carbides are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) and BET surface area measurements. The as-prepared Co₃Mo₃C/MCM41 catalyst exhibits good performance in both probe reactions of hydrodesulfurization (HDS) and hydrodenitrogenation (HDN), which proves the one-step decomposition method to be an effective route for the preparation of bimetallic carbide catalyst.     

Thermal stability of tungsten carbide in 7 mol.% calcia–zirconia solid solution matrix heat treated in argon

Zirconia polycrystals stabilised with 7 mol.% CaO containing 10 vol.% WC particles (Ca-PSZ/WC) were obtained by using zirconia nanopowder and WC micropowder. Cold isostatically pressed samples were pressureless sintered in argon at 1350–1950 °C. The influence of the sintering temperature and the incorporation of WC particles on the phase composition and mechanical properties of the composites were studied. Decomposition of WC due to the reaction with the zirconia matrix was found. W₂C and metallic tungsten were detected as decomposition products when heat treated below 1750 °C. At higher temperatures, ZrC is formed. The mechanism of WC decomposition was discussed. The zirconia polycrystals modified with in situ formed W and W₂C inclusions showed a bending strength of 417 ± 67 MPa, a fracture toughness of 5.2 ± 0.3 MPa m^0.5 and a hardness of 14.6 ± 0.3 GPa.     

Activity of carbided molybdena–alumina for CO2 hydrogenation

The relationship between the catalytic activity of carbided molybdena–alumina and the methane desorption from carbidic carbon through temperature-programmed surface reaction (TPSR) were studied. The effects of passivation and hydrogen treatment on the catalytic activities of molybdenum carbides for CO₂ hydrogenation were determined. When the 973 K-carbided catalyst was reduced at 773 K with hydrogen, the catalyst exhibited the highest activity for the reaction, the activity decreasing with increasing H₂ pretreatment temperature. Passivation of this catalyst decreased the reaction rate by 20%. TPSR results were correlated with the activity to reveal that molybdenum carbide with slightly deficient carbidic carbon (Mo₂C_0.962C_1.0) serves as an active site for CO₂ hydrogenation.     

W2C/AC催化快速热解松木磨木木质素

以活性炭（AC）为载体制备了不同钨负载量的W₂C/AC催化剂,将其和松木磨木木质素（MWL）机械混合后进行Py-GC/MS（快速热解-气相色谱/质谱联用）实验,考察了钨负载量、催化剂/MWL比例对产物分布的影响,并通过外标法对主要产物（芳烃类和酚类）的真实产率进行了定量分析。结果表明,W₂C/AC催化剂可有效促进木质素的热解解聚生成单酚类产物,并对酚类产物具有脱羰基、脱甲氧基、脱羟基以及加氢的效果,从而促进稳定的酚类产物（不含羰基、甲氧基和不饱和碳碳双键）和芳烃类产物的生成。在4种W₂C/AC催化剂中,10%-W₂C/AC的催化效果最佳,在催化剂/MWL比例为5时热解产物总产率达到最大值,此时芳烃类和酚类产物的总产率由无催化剂时的21.2 mg·g^-1和151.0 mg·g^-1增加至102.1 mg·g^-1和191.1 mg·g^-1。     

Catalytic conversion of cellulose into ethylene glycol over supported carbide catalysts

In the current paper we present a combined catalytic and surface science studies to evaluate the utilization of carbide catalysts for the conversion of cellulose to polyols, especially to ethylene glycol (EG). Based on catalytic studies over a W₂C catalyst, the EG yield has been optimized by varying H₂ pressure, reaction temperature and time. The catalytic performance has been compared for several types of supported catalysts, including tungsten carbides, molybdenum carbides and platinum on different supports. Among all the catalysts, tungsten carbide supported on activated carbon, W₂C/AC, shows the highest EG yield, which is further enhanced to 61% with the promotion of Ni. The corresponding surface science studies indicate that the enhanced EG yield is at least partially due to a weaker bonding between EG and Ni-promoted tungsten carbide surface.     

Low-Temperature Chemical Vapor Deposition Tungsten Carbide Coatings for Wear/Erosion Resistance

A new chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process has been developed to deposit hard coatings, containing tungsten carbide, at temperatures below 500°C. These coatings, which have been applied to both ferrous and nonferrous alloys, exhibit excellent resistance to wear and erosion. The coatings comprise a mixture of tungsten and the tungsten carbide, the latter being present as W₂C, W₂C + W₃C, or W₃C. The coatings' composition and properties can be controlled by varying the CVD process parameters. The unique lamellar, fine-grained microstructures of these coatings contribute to their good tribological properties.