Desaktivierung von technischen Silber-Trägerkatalysatoren für die Herstellung von Ethylenoxid

Deactivation of industrial supported silver catalysts for ethylene oxide production. In view of the model character of the reaction and the unique nature of the catalyst system, it is of interest to study the deactivation behaviour of technical supported silver catalysts for the production of ethylene oxide. In the present study the influence of the catalyst components support, silver, promoter and inhibitor upon the deactivation behaviour is described. The results of chemical, physical and technical investigations of various catalysts and catalyst components are presented. The investigations show that a decrease in the surface area of the exposed silver and increased deposition of chloride are responsible for catalyst deactivation. The possible influence of alkali promoters is discussed and modifications to the catalyst which have been described in the literature as influencing the deactivation are also evaluated.