Study on the modification of unsupported hydrodesulfurization catalysts by the ZSM-5 zeolite nanoclusters

Abstract

The influence of ZSM-5 zeolite nanoclusters on the unsupported Ni-Mo catalyst was investigated by correlating their physicochemical properties with the hydrodesulfurization (HDS) activity of dibenzothiophene (DBT). The physicochemical properties of the catalysts before and after modification were characterized by N2 adsorption-desorption, XRD, SEM, FT-IR, H2-TPR, Py-IR, and HRTEM techniques. Results showed that the specific surface area and Lewis acid of the unsupported Ni-Mo catalyst were improved obviously after modification, which indicate that the ZSM-5 zeolite nanoclusters were successfully introduced into the unsupported Ni-Mo catalysts. Besides, DBT HDS results revealed that the catalysts Z5-NiMo-10 g and Z5-NiMo-14h exhibited high hydrodesulfurization activity (the desulfurization rate of 98.1% and 100.0%, respectively). In particular, the catalyst Z5-NiMo-10 g produced the highest isomerization rate of 68.9% due to more dispersed structure and suitable acidity.