Catalytic reactions of ethanol on H3+xPMo12−xVxO40 catalysts

Abstract

The catalytic decomposition of ethanol on heteropolyacids (HPA) of the series H3+xPMo12−xVxO40 (x=0,1,2,3) was investigated at 240°C, using a pulse method. It has been shown that besides ethyl ether, ethylene, acetaldehyde and unreacted alcohol, a certain amount of alcohol was irreversibly sorbed by HPA. The amount of the latter decreased with x, which is considered to be due to the tighter bonding of Keggin units (KU) with an increasing number of intramolecular hydrogen bonds. The yield of ethyl ether forming at the surface was almost constant but that of ethylene and acetaldehyde decreased in the series x=0,1,2, which was connected with the increasingly difficult penetration of HPA molecules into the bulk. Some differences in the behavior of the sample with x=3 were the result of partial decomposition of this thermally stable catalyst.