Highly dispersed coal liquefaction catalysts

Abstract

Iron and molybdenum complexes were studied as precursors to high dispersion catalysts for coal liquefaction. The precursors were either organometallic complexes or water-soluble salts and were impregnated into coals of various ranks. The molybdenum catalysts were found to be very effective for conversion of an Illinois no. 6 bituminous coal whereas the iron catalysts were not. In contrast, the iron catalysts were found to be very effective for lignite conversions. A H-donor and a non-donor conversion system were compared, using tetralin and n-hexadecane, respectively. In each case the organometallic precursor gave greater yields of toluene-soluble material, with differences being most dramatic in the hexadecane system. The yields using the organometallic molybdenum presursors in hexadecane were found to be almost as great as those in the tetralin system, indicating that good catalyst precursors do not require donor solvents. The impregnation techniques were evaluated by comparing conversion yields and analysing the products using field ionization mass spectroscopy and FT-i.r.