Amorphous alloy catalysis: Part 1. Dehydrogenation of 2-propanol on amorphous Cu61Zr39 alloy precursors

The dehydrogenation of 2-propanol to acetone on Cu₆₁Zr₃₉ alloy has been studied for the first time. The dehydrogenation reaction (flow reactor, 573 K) on as-received or pre- activated (hydrogen, 573 K, 3 h or 473 K, 16 h) alloy brings about a continuous activation of the catalyst. Other types of pretreatment (heat treatment at 800 K for 0.5 h, or treatment with water vapour at 500 K for 24 h) induce an initially high, but unstable, activity. The activity changes parallel changes in the copper surface area (determined via N₂O decomposition), except for samples prepared by HF dissolution, which results in a highly active and stable catalyst with a low surface area. XRD and DSC indicate crystallisation of the amorphous alloy samples under the given reaction conditions and as a result of pretreatment.