Abstract
The carbonylation of dimethyl ether (DME) to produce methyl acetate (MA) has a promising prospect in industry. FER zeolites have high MA selectivity and considerable stability but suffer from low activity due to diffusion limitation. Enhancing the diffusion properties of FER zeolites can improve their competitiveness in the DME carbonylation. This study proposed the synthesis of finned FER zeolites with low Si/Al ratio by a secondary growth method. Based on NH3-TPD and FTIR, the amount and distribution of acid sites in FER with fins were determined. Combining the normalized MA formation rates on the BASs in 8-MR and diffusion kinetic studies of DME, the influence of diffusion limitation was quantitatively discussed. The results showed that the acidity and diffusion properties were significantly improved on the finned FER, which boosted the DME conversion. This work illustrated the importance of the acidity and diffusion properties in FER catalyzed DME carbonylation. It inspires the rational design of zeolite catalysts by constructing morphology and optimizing compositions.
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