Correlation between H-ZSM-5 crystal size and catalytic performance in the methanol-to-aromatics reaction

Abstract

The porosity of H-ZSM-5 zeolite is known to facilitate the diffusion of molecules in the methanol-to-aromatics (MTA) reaction. The activity and selectivity of the H-ZSM-5 catalyst in the MTA reaction has been studied as a function of crystal size. ZSM-5 zeolites with different crystal sizes were successfully synthesized by conventional hydrothermal methods. Tailoring ZSM-5 particle size was easily controlled by changes to the sol-gel composition, and in particular, the deionized water to tetrapropylammonium hydroxide ratio, and crystallization time. The structure of the H-ZSM-5 zeolites were characterized by X-ray diffraction and the morphology of the zeolite particles was determined by scanning electron microscopy. N2 adsorption-desorption measurements established changes to the textural properties, and compositional properties were characterized by X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy. Acidity measurements of the catalysts were measured by pyridine-adsorbed Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and the temperature-programmed desorption of ammonia. After subjecting the catalysts to the MTA reaction, the total amount of coke formed on the spent deactivated catalysts was determined by thermal gravimetric analysis. The results show that the SiO2/Al2O3 molar ratios and acidic properties of the H-ZSM-5 samples are similar, however, the nano-sized hierarchical ZSM-5 zeolite with an additional level of auxiliary pores possesses a higher surface area, larger mesopore volume and larger macropore volume, resulting in more effective mass transportation properties. The H-ZSM-5 zeolite catalysts were evaluated for their activity towards the MTA reaction as a function of crystal size. The nano-sized H-ZSM-5 catalyst having shorter diffusion path lengths, substantial mesoporosity and a high external surface area showed excellent selectivity toward aromatics (average > 42%) and benzene, toluene and xylenes (37% at 180 min). Furthermore, lower coking levels were observed on the nano-sized H-ZSM-5 catalyst when compared with the H-ZSM-5 catalysts possessing larger particle sizes and is attributed to a reduction in polyaromatic hydrocarbons being deposited within the internal surface area.