Preparation of acidic or bifunctional catalysts by means of straightforward calcination of as-synthesized [Ga]-ZSM-5 zeolites obtained from alkali-free media. Propane aromatization

Propane aromatization (530°C, 1 atm) was used as a reaction model to evaluate the effect of the calcination temperature on the catalytic properties of an as-synthesized [Ga_1.3]-ZSM-5 zeolite obtained from alkali-free media and calcined at two different temperatures: 530°C (C-530) and 750°C (C-750). Results show that in spite of its lower acidity, C-750 is more active and selective toward aromatics than C-530. This is probably due to the fact that at higher temperature the decomposition of organic compounds used during the zeolite synthesis is accompanied by a partial degalliation of the zeolitic support leading to the production of a bifunctional xGa₂O₃ /H-[Ga_y-ZSM-5(2x+y=1.3)catalyst.