Synthesis of zeolite IM-5 under rotating and static conditions and the catalytic performance of Mo/H-IM-5 catalyst in methane non-oxidative aromatization

The hydrothermal crystallization of zeolite IM-5 was investigated under rotating (denoted as IM-5-R) and static (denoted as IM-5-S) synthesis conditions. Mo-modified catalysts (Mo-IM-5-R and Mo-IM-5-S) were prepared for the methane non-oxidative aromatization. The physical properties and acidities of the samples were characterized by XRD, SEM, BET and IR spectroscopy. Compared with Mo-IM-5-S, the Mo-IM-5-R catalyst showed both a higher conversion of methane and higher selectivity to benzene in methane aromatization. A higher catalytic activity of Mo-IM-5-R may be attributed to the preferable textural properties and acidities of zeolite IM-5-R. Moreover, the catalyst prepared by the physical mixing method exhibited lower initial activity, but better stability for methane aromatization than that prepared by the impregnation method.