Dehydrogenation of ethylbenzene with nitrous oxide in the presence of mesoporous silica materials modified with transition metal oxides

The novel mesoporous templated silicas (MCM-48, SBA-15, MCF, and MSU) were used as supports for transition metal (Cu, Cr, or Fe) oxides. The catalysts were synthesized using the incipient wetness impregnation, and characterized by low-temperature N2 sorption, DRIFT, photoacoustic IR spectroscopy, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, and temperature-programmed desorption of ammonia. It was shown that the preparation method used results in different distributions and dimensions of the transition metal oxide clusters on the inert support surface. The prepared catalysts were tested in the reaction of oxidative dehydrogenation of ethylbenzene in the presence of nitrous oxide. The iron-containing catalysts showed the highest catalytic activity. The presence of isolated Fe3+ was found to be the most important factor influencing the ethylbenzene conversion. The undesirable effect of the increase in selectivity toward CO2 was observed for the samples with the highest concentrations of acidic surface sites.