Dehydration of methanol to dimethyl ether over modified vermiculites

Vermiculite materials pillared with alumina and modified with titanium were tested as catalysts for methanol dehydration to dimethyl ether. The different samples were characterized by powder XRD, TG, nitrogen adsorption, and pyridine adsorption followed by FTIR. Catalytic activity was evaluated in the temperature range 250–450 °C using different hourly space velocities, in the absence and in the presence of water in the feed. Modified vermiculites were shown to be active and selective in methanol dehydration. Al pillaring was found to result in more active catalysts than in the case of the modification with TiO₂. The influence of methanol hourly space velocity did not have a significant effect on methanol conversion, but it changed drastically selectivity to dimethyl ether at the beginning of the reaction. The addition of water had a negative effect on the catalysts’ activity and led to a faster catalyst deactivation.