Nanostructured Catalyst for Fischer–Tropsch Synthesis

Abstract

AbstractFischer–Tropsch synthesis (FTS) is a heterogeneous catalytic process for the production of fuels or chemicals from synthesis gas (CO + H2), which can be derived from nonpetroleum feedstocks such as natural gas, coal, or biomass. Co, Ru, Fe and Ni are all active in FTS, but only cheaper Fe and Co based catalysts are used in industry because the price of Ru is relatively high. However, the industrial Fe‐ and Co‐ based FTS catalysts normally work at a relatively high temperature range of 493—623 K in order to get a reasonable space time yield. Moreover, the product selectivity of FTS is governed by the law of polymerization, i.e., a so‐called Anderson‐Schulz‐Flory distribution holds, which restricts its industrial application. In this account, we highlight some of our progress toward the design/fabrication of nanostructured Fe, Co and Ru catalysts to improve FTS activity at the low temperature and to change the product selectivity and confine the product distribution into a certain range.