Katalysatoren des Leuna Werkes 1945 – 1988: Von der Empirie zur Wissenschaft. Teil III: Hydroraffinationskatalysatoren

Focus of the two preceding papers within this publication series were the development and manufacturing of technical catalysts at the Leuna Werke company from 1921 – 1945 (part I) and 1950 – 1991 (part II) for the reforming and isomerization catalysts. This article describes the genesis of the hydrofining group of catalysts as cornerstones of the GDR economy. 36 catalysts and 15 special aluminum oxides, X‐ray amorphous as well as crystalline aluminum silicates, were developed and brought into service for the Leuna hydrogenation and other refineries. During that time, a vast knowledge base was generated; new chemical processes were pioneered and equipped with tailor‐made catalysts developed in Leuna.     

Innovative Katalysatoren zur oxidativen Dehydrierung in der Gasphase – Metallische Kurzfasern

Innovative Catalysts for Oxidative Dehydration Reactions in the Gas Phase – Metallic Short Fibres The catalytic activity of metallic short fibres with chosen alloy composition and texture was investigated in the oxidative dehydration (ODH) of propane to yield propene, and of isopropanol to yield acetone. The short fibres were synthesised using a melt extraction process and the properties of the fibres were intensely characterised. A correlation between the structure and the catalytic activity of the material was established. Thus, light‐optical microscopic‐, DSC‐, XRD‐, REM‐ and EDX‐methods were used to characterise the fibres. Selective results of the dependency of the temperature on the propane conversion are presented in this work. A yield of more than 35 % propene is obtained at a propane conversion of 50 %. The ODH of isopropanol to acetone occurred with attractive yields of over 80 %. The results demonstrate the high innovative potential of the metal fibre materials.