Dehydrogenation of isopropyl alcohol on modified cobalt catalyst

The effects of plasmochemical processing and of Ce, K, and Hf additives on the rate of dehydrogenation for isopropyl alcohol on a 5 wt % Co/SiO₂ catalyst is studied under static and flow conditions. Glow discharge plasma in O₂ and Ar and high-frequency electrodeless plasma in H₂ (HF-H₂) are used. Except for one sample containing Hf, an increase in catalytic activity is observed due to the formation of new active centers. The change in the composition of the initial catalyst’s surface after treatment with Ce and with oxygen, argon, and HF-H₂ plasmas is determined by means of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The change in the size and shape of Co particles after treating the catalyst with HF-H₂ plasma and Ce is determined via X-ray phase analysis. It is suggested that the new catalytic centers formed after treatment in O₂ and Ar plasma contain carbon atoms with C1s bond energies of 282.1 eV; after treatment with HF-H₂ plasma, active centers contain hydrogen and carbon atoms with C1s bond energies of 282.5 eV; with cerium, the C1s bond energy is 297.7 eV.