Synthesis of vanadium-phosphorus oxide catalysts supported on pyrogenic silica and titanium dioxide

Various methods for the preparation of vanadium-phosphorus oxide (VPO) catalysts supported on aerosils A-300 and A-50 and TiO₂ were studied: a traditional method (in an organic solvent under varying the support addition time, the nature of the reducing agent, and the degree of reduction of vanadium oxide) and barothermal and mechanochemical syntheses. With the use of XRD analysis, it was found that the composition of the resulting VPO phase depends on the time of support addition to the synthesis and the temperature of thermal treatment. Conditions for the formation of a supported phase of VOHPO₄·0.5H₂O, the precursor of the active component (VO)₂P₂O₇, were determined. The presence of vanadium in an oxidation state of +4 was demonstrated using EPR and UV-VIS spectroscopy. The specific surface areas and pore structures of the synthesized catalysts were determined. The catalytic properties of samples in the reactions of n-butane oxidation in an excess of the hydrocarbon and oxidative ethane dehydrogenation were studied. It was found that, as compared with traditional bulk VPO catalysts, the use of the synthesized supported VPO catalysts made it possible to improve the process characteristics of n-butane oxidation and did not change these characteristics in the reaction of oxidative ethane dehydrogenation.