Oxidative Dehydrogenation of Propane over MoOx and POx Supported on Carbon Nanotube Catalysts

Abstract

AbstractCatalytic performance of MoOx–POx supported on oxidized carbon nanotube (oCNT) catalysts for oxidative dehydrogenation of propane has been investigated. The catalysts were characterized by XRD, TEM, and IR spectroscopy techniques and then tested through the propane oxidation dehydrogenation reaction. The results reveal that the addition of MoOx significantly improves the catalytic activity but reduces the selectivity to propene. In contrast, adding POx decreases the reactivity and increases the selectivity by suppressing the combustion reaction. Adding both POx and MoOx can improve the selectivity at the same conversion rate and thus increase the yield of the catalyst. As compared to MoOx/oCNTs, the stability of the MoOx–POx/oCNT catalyst is significantly improved. This is because the addition of POx can promote MoOx dispersion on the CNT surface and hence improve the catalytic performance.