Silica aerogel supported catalysts for Fischer–Tropsch synthesis

Abstract

Cobalt catalysts supported on silica aerogel have been prepared using sol–gel chemistry followed by drying under supercritical ethanol conditions. Three different loadings of cobalt were synthesized: 2, 6, and 10% by weight. Transmission electron micrographs indicate that the metallic cobalt exists as discrete particles 50–70 nm in diameter for the 2 and 6% loadings. The 10% catalyst shows long needles of cobalt. BET and BJH measurements indicate that the catalysts retain the silica aerogel properties of high surface area (∼800 m 2/g), large pore volume (∼5 cm 3/g), and an average pore diameter in the mesoporous regime (∼25 nm). The catalysts were evaluated for Fischer–Tropsch activity in a laboratory-scale packed bed reactor. All three catalysts were active with the 10% Co catalyst achieving more than 20% CO conversion which corresponds to a rate of 1.53 g CO per g-cat per hour. The catalysts were selective for the C 10+ hydrocarbons with more than 50% of the carbon contained within this fraction. A significant portion of the C 9–C 15 hydrocarbon product was observed as 1-olefins which reflects the enhanced mass transport within the very porous aerogel support.