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Metal-promoted sulfated zirconia catalysts redox and acidic characteristics and their impact on n-butane isomerization

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Abstract

The catalytic efficiency of palladium supported sulfated zirconia catalysts in the isomerization of n-butane to isobutane has been studied in relation to the effects of the active site features (redox and acidic). By using the XRD, UV-DRS, and N2 adsorption methods, the structural and textural changes in the synthesized catalyst were investigated. H2-TPR was used to assess the sulfate species' type and distribution on the surface of the catalysts as well as their redox behavior. The n-butylamine titration method, NH3-TPD, and Py-FT-IR spectroscopy were used to characterize the nature/strength and kinds of acid sites. The CO-TPD was used to determine the kind of active sites. The outcomes showed that the Fe promoter in a sulfated catalyst has a major impact on the activity of n-butane isomerization. Comparing Fe–Mn and Fe alone promoted catalysts to a combination of Fe–Cr and Fe–V promoters, the activity was further increased. The findings of the characterization showed that the nature of the metal dopants influences the surface characteristics of the catalysts (their redox nature and the strength of their surface adsorption), which may be related to their ionic charge or electron density. The metal–metal synergy between the metal dopant and the zirconia matrix, which helped to improve the catalysts performance for n-butane isomerization, is primarily responsible for the active sites' adsorption capacity and reducibility. The findings of the characterization showed that the nature of metal dopants governs the surface properties of the catalysts (redox nature and surface adsorption strength), which could be related to the electron density or ionic charge. The metal–metal synergy between the metal dopant and the zirconia matrix is primarily responsible for the active sites' adsorption capacity and reducibility, which contributed to improve the catalysts' performance for n-butane isomerization. In addition, for the purpose of optimizing the Fe–V promoted sulfated zirconia catalyst, catalyst characteristics (acidity) can be adjusted by the catalyst synthesis conditions.

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Acknowledgements

The authors appreciate the management's assistance in supporting the effort. We are also grateful for the project manager, Dr. Adel Al-Shafai, and the project participants, Mr. Srikant Badgandi and Mr. Faizal Benaskar. Additionally, I would like to thank Ms. A.D. Rosa and Mr. R. Ganeshan for characterizing the catalyst samples using the XRF and n-butylamine titration methods.

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  1. SABIC Research and Technology Pvt. Ltd, Plot No 81 to 85, Village: Chikkadunnasandra, Ankel Taluk, Off. Sarjapura–Attibele State Highway, Near St. Philomena School, Bengaluru, Karnataka, 562125, India

    Naresh Dhachapally, Pavani Sreekanth, Umesh Hasyagar, Vinod S. Nair & Shweta Hegde

  2. SABIC Research and Technology, P.O. Box 11669, Jubail, Saudi Arabia

    Sami Al-Mutairi

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  1. Naresh Dhachapally
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  2. Pavani Sreekanth
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Contributions

Conceptualization: ND and PS; investigation: ND, UH and SH; validation: ND and PS; writing—original draft: ND; visualization: ND, PS, and SA-M; writing—review & editing: ND, VN and SA-M; supervision: VN. All of the authors discussed and commented on the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Naresh Dhachapally.

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Dhachapally, N., Sreekanth, P., Hasyagar, U. et al. Metal-promoted sulfated zirconia catalysts redox and acidic characteristics and their impact on n-butane isomerization. Reac Kinet Mech Cat 136, 1327–1355 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11144-023-02415-x

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