Commercial nickel-kieselguhr isopropanol dehydrogenation catalysts: Morphology and catalytic and electronic properties

Abstract

Isopropanol conversion over commercial nickel-kieselguhr catalyst is studied. It is found that using this catalyst allows the single-step production of acetone (in contrast to familiar two-step technologies) with a catalyst not been previously used in this process in a range of moderate temperatures with a feedstock conversion of 97% and a target product yield of 82.4%. Changes that occur in the phase composition, surface structure, and electronic properties of the nickel catalyst under the action of the reaction medium are studied via scanning electron microscopy, thermal analysis, X-ray diffraction, and conductometry. It is shown that the conversion of isopropanol into acetone through the dehydrogenation reaction is accompanied by a loosening of the initial homogeneous globular structure of the catalyst to form nickel nanoclusters. Active sites in the alcohol conversion reactions are nickel ions in different states of oxidation and cationic and anionic vacancies.