Deactivation kinetics of a HZSM‐5 zeolite catalyst treated with alkali for the transformation of bio‐ethanol into hydrocarbons

The kinetics of deactivation by coke of a HZSM‐5 zeolite catalyst in the transformation of bioethanol into hydrocarbons has been studied. To attenuate deactivation, the following treatments have been carried out: (i) the zeolite has been subjected to a treatment with alkali to reduce the acid strength of the sites and (ii) it has subsequently been agglomerated into a macro and meso‐porous matrix of bentonite and alumina. The experimental study has been conducted in a fixed bed reactor under the following conditions: temperature, between 300 and 400°C; pressure, 1 atm; space‐time, up to 1.53 (g of catalyst) h (g of ethanol)^?1; particle size of the catalyst, between 0.3 and 0.6 mm; feed flowrate, 0.16 cm³ min^?1 of ethanol+water and 30 cm³ (NC) min^?1 of N₂; water content in the feed, up to 75 wt %; time on stream, up to 31 h. The expression for deactivation kinetics is dependent on the concentration of hydrocarbons and water in the reaction medium (which attenuates the deactivation) and, together with the kinetics at zero time on stream, allows the calculation of the evolution with time on stream of the yields and distribution of products (ethylene, propylene and butenes, C₁‐C₃ paraffins, and C₄‐C₁₂). By increasing the temperature in the 300–400°C range the role of ethylene on coke deposition is more significant than that of the other hydrocarbons (propylene, butenes and C₄‐C₁₂), which contribute to a greater extent to the formation of coke at 300°C. © 2011 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 58: 526–537, 2012.     

Undesired components in the transformation of biomass pyrolysis oil into hydrocarbons on an HZSM‐5 zeolite catalyst

The results of the catalytic transformation on HZSM‐5 zeolite of mixtures of components of biomass pyrolysis oil in the 673–723 K temperature range are evidence of the need for previously separating certain components (aldehydes, oxyphenols and furfural) that undergo severe thermal degradation by forming carbonaceous deposits at the reactor inlet ducts and on the catalyst itself. The deactivation of the catalyst is a consequence of the deposition of two different types of coke: one of catalytic origin (similar to that generated in the transformation of methanol and bioethanol) and the other of thermal origin, which is produced by the aforementioned degradation. The remaining oxygenate components react to each other with synergistic effect, which means that their reactivity is higher than that of the pure components. The results show that the aqueous fraction of biomass pyrolysis oil may be transformed into hydrocarbons on acid catalysts similarly to the more familiar transformation of methanol and bioethanol. Copyright © 2005 Society of Chemical Industry     

Olefin production by cofeeding methanol and n‐butane: Kinetic modeling considering the deactivation of HZSM‐5 zeolite

The joint transformation of methanol and n‐butane fed into a fixed‐bed reactor on a HZSM‐5 zeolite catalyst has been studied under energy neutral conditions (methanol/n‐butane molar ratio of 3/1). The kinetic scheme of lumps proposed integrates the reaction steps corresponding to the individual reactions (cracking of n‐butane and MTO process at high‐temperature) and takes into account the synergies between the steps of both reactions. The deactivation by coke deposition has been quantified by an expression dependent on the concentration of the components in the reaction medium, which is evidence that oxygenates are the main coke precursors. The concentration of the components in the reaction medium (methanol, dimethyl ether, n‐butane, C₂? C₄ paraffins, C₂? C₄ olefins, C₅? C₁₀ lump, and methane) is satisfactorily calculated in a wide range of conditions (between 400 and 550°C, up to 9.5 (g of catalyst) h (mol CH₂)^?1 and with a time on stream of 5 h) by combining the equation of deactivation with the kinetic model of the main integrated process. © 2010 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2011     

HZSM-5型分子筛催化乙醇溶液脱水制备乙烯的工艺

以稀乙醇溶液为原料、自制分子筛HZSM-5为催化剂,催化脱水制备乙烯.考察了硅铝比、反应温度、质量空速及乙醇的质量浓度对该反应的影响,得到了较优化的反应工艺条件为:催化剂为HZSM-5(硅铝比30)分子筛,ρ(乙醇)为100~200 g/L,质量空速为2~6 h-1,反应温度为300℃.乙醇的转化率可达99%,乙烯的选择性达99%以上.     

Catalytic Activity of Copper Oxide Impregnated HZSM‐5 in Methanol Conversion to Liquid Hydrocarbons

A number of CuO/HZSM‐5 catalysts have been studied in a small scale fixed bed reactor for the conversion of methanol to gasoline range hydrocarbons at 673 K and at one atmospheric pressure. All the catalysts were prepared by wet impregnation technique. The copper oxide loading over HZSM‐5 (Si/Al=45) catalyst was studied in the range of 0 to 9 wt%. XRD, surface area analyzer, metal trace analyzer, SEM techniques and TGA were used to characterize the catalysts. Incorporation of CuO onto HZSM‐5 zeolite significantly increased conversion and liquid hydrocarbon product yields. The major liquid products of the reactions were ethyl benzene, toluene, xylene, isopropyl benzene, ethyl toluene, trimethyl benzene and tetramethyl benzene. The maximum methanol conversion and hydrocarbon product yield was obtained at a copper oxide loading of 7 wt%. Effect of run time on conversion and product distribution was also investigated to compare the performance of these catalysts and coke on the catalyst was determined. Effect of space‐time and temperature on methanol conversion and products yield with 7 wt% CuO/HZSM‐5 has also been investigated and analyzed qualitatively.     

Chemical kinetic modeling of i‐butane and n‐butane catalytic cracking reactions over HZSM‐5 zeolite

A chemical kinetic model for i‐butane and n‐butane catalytic cracking over synthesized HZSM‐5 zeolite, with SiO₂/Al₂O₃ = 484, and in a plug flow reactor under various operating conditions, has been developed. To estimate the kinetic parameters of catalytic cracking reactions of i‐butane and n‐butane, a lump kinetic model consisting of six reaction steps and five lumped components is proposed. This kinetic model is based on mechanistic aspects of catalytic cracking of paraffins into olefins. Furthermore, our model takes into account the effects of both protolytic and bimolecular mechanisms. The Levenberg–Marquardt algorithm was used to estimate kinetic parameters. Results from statistical F‐tests indicate that the kinetic models and the proposed model predictions are in satisfactory agreement with the experimental data obtained for both paraffin reactants. © 2011 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 58: 2456–2465, 2012     

Conversion of isopropanol and mixed alcohols to hydrocarbons using HZSM‐5 Catalyst in the MixAlco™ process

HZSM‐5 (SiO₂/Al₂O₃=280 mol/mol) is used to produce hydrocarbons from reagent‐grade isopropanol and mixed alcohols made from lignocellulosic biomass (waste office paper and chicken manure) using the MixAlco? process. All studies were performed at 101 kPa (abs). The experiments were conducted in two sets: (1) vary temperature (300–T_max°C) at weight hourly space velocity (WHSV)=1.31 h^–1, and (2) vary WHSV (0.5–11.5 h^–1) at T=370°C. For isopropanol, T_max=450°C and for mixed alcohols T_max=520°C. For isopropanol, higher temperatures produced more gaseous products and more aromatics. High WHSV gives high concentration of C6+ olefins, whereas low WHSV gives high concentrations of C9 aromatics. For mixed alcohols, changes in temperature affected the product distribution similar to isopropanol. In contrast, WHSV did not affect the concentration of reaction products; only dehydration products were observed. © 2013 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 59: 2549–2557, 2013     

Mechanistic insights into aqueous phase propanol dehydration in H‐ZSM‐5 zeolite

Aqueous phase dehydration of 1‐propanol over H‐ZSM‐5 zeolite was investigated using density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The water molecules in the zeolite pores prefer to aggregate via the hydrogen bonding network and be protonated at the Brønsted acidic sites (BAS). Two typical configurations, i.e., dispersed and clustered, of water molecules were identified by ab initio molecular dynamics simulations of the mimicking aqueous phase H‐ZSM‐5 unit cell with 20 water molecules per unit cell. DFT calculated Gibbs free energies suggest that the dimeric propanol–propanol, the propanol–water, and the trimeric propanol–propanol–water complexes are formed at high propanol concentrations in aqueous phase, which provide a kinetically feasible dehydration reaction channel of 1‐propanol to propene. The calculation results indicate that the propanol dehydration via the unimolecular mechanism becomes kinetically discouraged due to the enhanced stability of the protonated dimeric propanol and the protonated water cluster acting as the BAS site for alcohol dehydration. © 2016 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 63: 172–184, 2017     

Preparation and Performances of Hierarchical Structured HZSM‐5 Washcoating on Stainless‐Steel Substrates

The washcoats of the hierarchical HZSM‐5 zeolite (through desilication) were prepared on the inner surface of SS304 stainless‐steel tubes. The properties of slurries and coatings were characterized by analysis of particle size, measurements of rheological property, loading, adhesion, and finally the catalytic cracking test. It was found that introducing mesoporosity on the zeolite crystals was beneficial for reducing the particle size during ball milling for slurries preparation, which was helpful for improving loading due to a significant change in the rheological property. As the interaction between the particles with different sizes was enhanced after ball milling, the adhesion of the prepared coatings was improved. The catalytic activity and stability of the hierarchical HZSM‐5 coatings for the catalytic cracking of n‐dodecane were 56% and 75% higher than that of the conventional one, respectively. This probably resulted from the enhanced diffusion rate of reactant and products in the crystals and the coatings.     

Production of olefins from ethanol by Fe and/or P‐modified H‐ZSM‐5 zeolite catalysts

BACKGROUND: Much attention has been paid to the catalytic conversion of ethanol to olefins, since biomass resources such as ethanol are carbon‐neutral and renewable, and olefins are useful as both fuels and chemicals. It has been reported that zeolite H‐ZSM‐5 is effective for converting ethanol to hydrocarbons, with the chief products being aromatic compounds. RESULTS: Successive addition of Fe and P to the H‐ZSM‐5 improved the initial selectivity for propylene, while the sole addition of Fe or P and co‐addition of Fe and P showed medium initial selectivity. In general, catalysts showing higher initial selectivity for propylene exhibited a steeper decrease in propylene selectivity with time on‐stream. The cause of the change in product selectivity may be carbon deposition during reaction. Addition of Fe and P can improve catalytic stability when processing both neat and aqueous ethanol. The catalytic performance was regenerated by calcination in flowing air. CONCLUSION: Fe‐ and/or P‐modified H‐ZSM‐5 zeolite catalysts efficiently produced olefins (especially propylene) from ethanol. Effective catalyst regeneration was achieved by calcination in flowing air. Copyright © 2010 Society of Chemical Industry     

碱改性介-微孔HZSM-5分子筛催化乙醇脱水制乙烯性能

对两种不同硅铝比的HZSM-5分子筛进行碱处理,制备介-微孔复合HZSM-5分子筛,研究乙醇脱水制乙烯的催化性能,并考察碱溶液浓度和处理温度对HZSM-5分子筛孔结构和表面酸性的影响。结果表明,适宜的碱处理条件有利于分子筛发生骨架脱硅和脱铝,从而形成介孔。碱处理对硅铝比低的HZSM-5分子筛酸性质影响明显,而硅铝比高的HZSM-5分子筛在碱处理过程中酸性质变化不明显,更易发生脱硅和脱铝而形成更多介孔。碱改性介-微孔HZSM-5分子筛催化剂使乙醇脱水制乙烯催化性能得到改善,尤其低温催化活性提高,这主要归功于碱处理中介孔的形成和表面酸性的调变。     

Controllable fabrication and catalytic activity of highly b‐oriented HZSM‐5 coatings

Multilayer b‐orientated HZSM‐5 catalytic coating is controllably synthesized by repeated growth of zeolite layer on Ti?OH‐modified surface of sublayer. The as‐prepared zeolite coating shows performance enhancement up to 110% in catalytic cracking of n‐dodecane ascribed to enhanced mass transfer in its straight and short pathway along the b‐axis. © 2014 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 60: 1964–1968, 2014     

An infrared spectroscopic study of the mechanism of chloromethane conversion to higher hydrocarbons on HZSM5 catalyst

Investigation of the reaction mechanism of chloromethane on ZSM5 is a new topic. In this work an in situ FTIR technique was employed to study the conversion processes of chloromethane, the active sites on HZSM5, and the desorption state of surface species. The catalytic conversion of chloromethane to higher hydrocarbons was also studied. It is demonstrated that chloromethane can be reversibly adsorbed on acidic sites of HZSM5 at room temperature. At 100°C chloromethane is irreversibly and dissociatively adsorbed on the strong acidic sites of HZSM5, on which surface methoxyl is formed as proved by infrared characteristic C-H stretchings of-CH₃ at 2960 and 2870 cm^–1. Alkoxyls are produced and adsorbed on the catalyst surface as characterized by the infrared absorption bands of -CH₂-groups at 1460 and 2930 cm^–1. At 100°C the adsorbed methoxyl and alkoxyls are the main surface species, and a small amount of aromatics might exist as detected by a characteristic absorption band at 1510 cm^–1. Between 100 and 200°C the adsorbed surface methoxyl and alkoxyls are converted to aromatics, and the occupied OH groups partially appear. At temperature higher than 300°C the adsorbed aromatics are thermally desorbed into the gas phase. Aromatics and alkanes are the main products in catalytic conversion. These results reveal that the formation of aromatics from methoxyl and alkoxyls is easier than the desorption of aromatics from HZSM5 catalyst. An alkoxyl mechanism is proposed for the conversion of chloromethane on HZSM5 based upon the experimental results and the three assumptions: (a) The primary C-C bond is formed from surface methoxyl groups via the methoxyl group polarization and C-H bond weakening, (b) The adsorbed alkoxyls are converted to aromatics via hydrogen transfer and bond rearrangement similar to the conventional carbenium ion mechanism for the aromatization of olefins and alkanes on HZSM5. The hydrogen atoms from the aromatization stimulate the desorption of alkoxyls to alkanes. (c) At temperature higher than 300°C surface reactions and desorption of adsorbed species take place simultaneously, determining the product distribution in the catalytic conversion.     

Conversion of isopropanol and mixed alcohols to hydrocarbons using HZSM‐5 catalyst in the MixAlco™ process. Part 2: Studies at 5000 kPa (abs)

This study employed HZSM‐5 (SiO₂/Al₂O₃ = 280 mol/mol) to produce hydrocarbons from reagent‐grade isopropanol and mixed alcohols made from lignocellulosic biomass (waste office paper and chicken manure) using the MixAlco? process. All studies were performed at P = 5000 kPa (abs). The experiments were conducted in two sets: (1) vary temperature (300–450°C) at weight hourly space velocity (WHSV) = 1.92 h^?1, and (2) vary WHSV (1.92–11.52 h^?1) at T = 370°C. For isopropanol at higher temperatures, the olefins undergo more cracking reactions to produce smaller molecules and more aromatics. At low temperatures, the molecules have less energy so they do not crack and therefore form larger molecules. At T = 300°C, the carbon distribution is bimodal at C9 and C12, which shows trimerization and tetramerization of propene. At 300°C, propene was the only gas produced, cracking did not occur and therefore preserved high‐molecular‐weight molecules. For mixed alcohols, higher temperatures show significant catalyst deactivation; however, isopropanol did not show any catalyst deactivation. © 2016 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 62: 1707–1715, 2016     

Reaction kinetics of 2‐((2‐aminoethyl) amino) ethanol in aqueous and non‐aqueous solutions using the stopped‐flow technique

Observed pseudo‐first‐order rate constants (k_o) for the reaction between CO₂ and 2‐((2‐aminoethyl) amino) ethanol (AEEA) were measured using the stopped‐flow technique in an aqueous system at 298, 303, 308 and 313 K, and in non‐aqueous systems of methanol and ethanol at 293, 298, 303 and 308 K. Alkanolamine concentrations ranged from 9.93 to 80.29 mol m^?3 for the aqueous system, 29.99–88.3 mol m^?3 for methanol and 44.17–99.28 mol m^?3 for ethanol. Experimentally obtained rate constants were correlated with two mechanisms. For both the aqueous‐ and non‐aqueous‐AEEA systems, the zwitterion mechanism with a fast deprotonation step correlated the data well as assessed by the reported statistical analysis. As expected, the reaction rate of CO₂ in the aqueous‐AEEA system was found to be much faster than in methanol or ethanol. Compared to other promising amines and diamines studied using the stopped‐flow apparatus, the pseudo‐first‐order reaction rate constants were found to obey the following order: PZ (cyclic‐diamine) > EDA (diamine) > AEEA (diamine) > 3‐AP (primary amine) > MEA (primary amine) > EEA (primary amine) > MO (cyclic‐amine). The reaction rate constant of CO₂ in aqueous‐AEEA was double that in aqueous‐MEA, and the difference increased with an increase in concentration. All reaction orders were practically unity. With a higher capacity for carbon dioxide and a higher reaction rate, AEEA could have been a good substitute to MEA if not for its high thermal degradation. AEEA kinetic behaviour is still of interest as a degradation product of MEA. © 2012 Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering     

Pyrolytic lignin removal for the valorization of biomass pyrolysis crude bio‐oil by catalytic transformation

BACKGROUND: The catalytic processes for valorizing the bio‐oil obtained from lignocellulosic biomass pyrolysis face the problem that a great amount of carbonaceous material is deposited on the catalyst due to the polymerization of phenol‐derived compounds in the crude bio‐oil. This carbonaceous material blocks the catalytic bed and contributes to rapid catalyst deactivation. This paper studies an on‐line two‐step process, in which the first one separates the polymerizable material and produces a reproducible material whose valorization is of commercial interest. RESULTS: The establishment of a step for pyrolytic lignin deposition at 400 °C avoids the blockage of the on‐line catalytic bed and attenuates the deactivation of a HZSM‐5 zeolite based catalyst used for hydrocarbon production. The origin of catalyst deactivation is coke deposition, which has two fractions (thermal and catalytic), whose content is attenuated by prior pyrolytic lignin separation and by co‐feeding methanol. The morphology and properties of the material deposited in the first step (pyrolytic lignin) are similar to lignins obtained as a by‐product in wood pulp manufacturing. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed reaction strategy, with two steps (thermal and catalytic) in series, valorizes the crude bio‐oil by solving the problems caused by the polymerization of phenolic compounds, which are obtained in the pyrolysis of the lignin contained in lignocellulosic biomass. Given that a by‐product (pyrolytic lignin) is obtained with similar properties to the lignin from wood pulping manufacturing, the perspectives for the viability of lignocellulosic biomass valorization are promising, which is essential for furthering its implementation in biorefinery processes. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry     

Ethanol perm‐selective B‐ZSM‐5 zeolite membranes from dilute solutions

Boron‐substituted MFI (B‐ZSM‐5) zeolite membranes with high pervaporation (PV) performance were prepared onto seeded inexpensive macroporous α‐Al₂O₃ supports from dilute solution and explored for the separation of ethanol/water mixtures by PV. The effects of several parameters on microstructures and PV performance of the B‐ZSM‐5 membranes were examined systematically, including the seed size, synthesis temperature, crystallization time, B/Si ratio, H₂O/SiO₂ ratio and silica source. A continuous and compact B‐ZSM‐5 membrane was fabricated from solution containing 1 tetraethyl orthosilicate/0.2 tetrapropylammonium hydroxide/0.06 boric acid/600 H₂O at 448 K for 24 h, showing a separation factor of 55 and a flux of 2.6 kg/m² h along with high reproducibility for a 5 wt % ethanol/water mixture at 333 K. It was demonstrated that the incorporation of boron into mobile five (MFI) structure could increase the hydrophobicity of B‐ZSM‐5 membrane evidenced by the improved contact angle and amount of the adsorbed ethanol, and thus enhance the PV property for ethanol/water mixtures. © 2016 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 62: 2447–2458, 2016