Supercritical Fluids in Catalysis: Opportunities of In Situ Spectroscopic Studies and Monitoring Phase Behavior

A number of homogeneous and heterogeneous catalytic reactions have been successfully performed in supercritical fluids (SCFs). An overview on recent developments in the areas of alkylation, isomerization, hydrogenation, partial oxidation, amination, and CO₂-fixation using heterogeneous catalysts and supercritical fluids is given. Additionally, strategies towards a more fundamental understanding of catalytic reactions in supercritical fluids are outlined. One aspect is the identification of phase behavior in such multicomponent systems. Their complexity and the input of in situ monitoring is discussed. It is proposed that binary fluid mixtures are an ideal guide for simplifying and understanding the phase behavior in reaction mixtures. In order to strengthen the future use of this knowledge, e.g., for optimization of reactions in SCFs, an overview on the different topologies of binary mixtures is given. Another aspect is in situ characterization of the catalytic reaction and their intermediates, the intermolecular interactions in the fluid, the heterogeneous catalyst phase, and the solid/fluid interphase. The opportunities of various available spectroscopic tools, applicable in situ, are also reviewed by referring to examples from homogeneous catalysis or low-pressure studies.     

Gold supported on Mg, Al and Cu containing mixed oxides: Relation between surface properties and behavior in catalytic aerobic oxidation of 1-phenylethanol

Aerobic oxidation of 1-phenylethanol was investigated over Au deposited on flame-derived Mg–Al and Cu–Mg–Al mixed oxides with different metal ratios. A maximum in acetophenone (1-phenyl-ethanone) yield was observed for catalysts based on both Cu–Mg–Al and Mg–Al mixed oxides depending on their composition. Special attention was given to the elucidation of the role of surface basicity and the influence of the preparation route on the particle size of Au. Adsorption of CO₂ from the liquid phase combined with in situ ATR-IR and modulation excitation spectroscopy (MES) was applied to investigate differences in the surface properties of the mixed oxides as a function of the composition. Monodentate and bidentate carbonates were identified, the former being dominant on supports with high Cu contents. In order to obtain a rough quantification of the surface basicity, the retroaldolisation of 4-hydroxy-4-methyl-2-pentanone (diacetone alcohol, DAA) was chosen as a probe reaction indicating that a ratio Mg/Al = 3 results in optimal surface basicity. Moreover, the addition of Cu only lead to a partial loss in retroaldolisation activity, indicating that also the copper sites form basic centers on the surface, however, slightly weaker ones than the corresponding Mg sites. The preparation routes applied (adsorption of colloid, deposition precipitation, and impregnation) lead to different gold particle sizes characterized by mean diameters of ≈2, ≈9 and ≈30 nm, respectively. Catalytic tests using Au/Cu₁Mg₂Al₁O_x catalysts with different mean gold particle size hint towards a particle size dependence of the aerobic oxidation of 1-phenylethanol, showing higher activity for the catalyst containing gold particles of ca. 9 nm compared to those with 2 and 30 nm particles, respectively.     

Catalysts at work: From integral to spatially resolved X-ray absorption spectroscopy

Spectroscopic studies on heterogeneous catalysts have mostly been done in an integral mode. However, in many cases spatial variations in catalyst structure can occur, e.g. during impregnation of pre-shaped particles, during reaction in a catalytic reactor, or in microstructured reactors as the present overview shows. Therefore, spatially resolved molecular information on a microscale is required for a comprehensive understanding of theses systems, partly in ex situ studies, partly under stationary reaction conditions and in some cases even under dynamic reaction conditions.Among the different available techniques, X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) is a well-suited tool for this purpose as the different selected examples highlight. Two different techniques, scanning and full-field X-ray microscopy/tomography, are described and compared. At first, the tomographic structure of impregnated alumina pellets is presented using full-field transmission microtomography and compared to the results obtained with a scanning X-ray microbeam technique to analyse the catalyst bed inside a catalytic quartz glass reactor. On the other hand, by using XAS in scanning microtomography, the structure and the distribution of Cu(0), Cu(I), Cu(II) species in a Cu/ZnO catalyst loaded in a quartz capillary microreactor could be reconstructed quantitatively on a virtual section through the reactor. An illustrating example for spatially resolved XAS under reaction conditions is the partial oxidation of methane over noble metal-based catalysts. In order to obtain spectroscopic information on the spatial variation of the oxidation state of the catalyst inside the reactor XAS spectra were recorded by scanning with a micro-focussed beam along the catalyst bed. Alternatively, full-field transmission imaging was used to efficiently determine the distribution of the oxidation state of a catalyst inside a reactor under reaction conditions. The new technical approaches together with quantitative data analysis and an appropriate in situ catalytic experiment allowed drawing important conclusions on the reaction mechanism, and the analytical strategy might be similarly applied in other case studies. The corresponding temperature profiles and the catalytic performance were measured by means of an IR-camera and mass spectrometric analysis. In a more advanced experiment the ignition process of the partial oxidation of methane was followed in a spatiotemporal manner which demonstrates that spatially resolved spectroscopic information can even be obtained in the subsecond scale.     

Ferromagnetic resonance study of reduced NiCl2 graphite intercalation compound

A commercial reduction compound of graphite intercalated with NiCl₂ has been investigated by FMR. The X-band measurements for 573 ? T ? 3.5 K and Q-band for 293 ? T ? 150 K show the presence of metallic Ni and some unreduced NiCl₂. The Ni resonance signals have very large linewidths, δH_pp ～ 1800 ? 2000 Oe for 300 ? T ? 150 K. Analysis of the lineshape indicates that Ni remains intercalated in the graphite. The intercalated Ni exhibits a Curie temperature which is approximately 50 K lower than that of bulk Ni. The NiCl₂ X-band signals observed for 150 ? T 3.7 K show a maximum in intensity and linewidth at about 15 K, which is attributed to thermally induced magnetic excitations in the remaining finite NiCl₂ clusters. An in-plane exchange constant, J/k = 15 K, is estimated for NiCl₂ from the temperature dependence of the signal intensity.     

Epoxidation of Allylic Alcohols with TiO2–SiO2: Hydroxy-Assisted Mechanism and Dynamic Structural Changes During Reaction

Epoxidation of allylic alcohols and cyclohexene with TBHP and titania–silica aerogels containing 1 and 5wt% TiO₂ has been studied. For the oxidation of geraniol and cyclohexenol, the regio- and diastereoselectivities and kinetic data indicate an OH-assisted mechanism involving a dative bond between the OH group and the Ti site. This mechanism is disabled in the oxidation of cyclooctenol due to steric hindrance. The moderate regio- and diastereoselectivities of the aerogels, compared with those of TS-1 and the homogeneous model Ti(OSiMe₃)₄, are attributed to the presence of non-isolated Ti sites and to a silanol-assisted mechanism, according to which model the allylic alcohol is anchored to a neighboring SiOH group instead of the Ti-peroxo complex. Kinetic analysis of the initial transient period revealed rapid catalyst restructuring during the first few turnovers. A feasible explanation is the breaking of Si–O–Ti linkages of the carefully predried aerogels by water or TBHP, resulting in active Ti sites with remarkably different catalytic properties.     

Heterogeneous enantioselective hydrogenation over cinchona alkaloid modified platinum: mechanistic insights into a complex reaction

Modification of a metal surface by a strongly adsorbed chiral organic molecule has proven to be an interesting strategy for heterogeneous chiral catalysis. Platinum chirally modified by cinchona alkaloids, successfully applied for the enantioselective hydrogenation of alpha-ketoesters, is probably the most prominent catalyst based on this concept. Despite considerable research efforts toward understanding of this complex catalytic system, the proposed mechanistic models are still debated. Here we discuss how enantiodifferentiation can be induced on a catalytically active surface and validate the models proposed for the platinum-cinchona system in the light of the existing molecular knowledge.     

Characterization by temperature programmed reduction

Fresh and used EUROCAT Oxide-2 catalyst made up of V₂O₅, WO₃ and TiO₂ with SiO₂, Al₂O₃ and CaO as main additives have been studied by means of temperature programmed reduction (TPR). As in the EUROCAT Oxide-1 project (V₂O₅/TiO₂ catalysts) for similar conditions similar profiles were obtained in the different laboratories. In contrast to the V₂O₅/TiO₂ catalysts (EUROCAT Oxide-1 project), where the vanadia content could be determined by TPR with reasonable reliability, the exact determination of the vanadia and tungsta loading for the ternary catalysts is not possible because of the occurrence of several superimposed phenomena (reduction of vanadia, tungsta and titania and formation/reduction of CaWO₄, reactions are not completed at maximal temperature reached), which are not discernible by TPR.