TY - JOUR
T1 - Tuning the catalytic acidity in Al2O3 nanofibers with mordenite nanocrystals for dehydration reactions
AU - Rodriguez-Olguin, M.A.
AU - Cruz-Herbert, R.N.
AU - Atia, H.
AU - Bosco, M.
AU - Fornero, E.L.
AU - Eckelt, R.
AU - De Haro Del Río, D.A.
AU - Aguirre, A.
AU - Gardeniers, J.G.E.
AU - Susarrey-Arce, A.
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors thank Jimmy A. Faria (Catalytic Processes and Materials (CPM), University of Twente) and Mark Smithers (MESA+ Institute, University of Twente) for their support. The research leading to the results in this report has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program (Grant agreement No. 742004). The authors are thankful for the financial support from the Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) PIP-2021-11220200100731CO. The authors also thank the Mexican Council for Science and Technology (CONACyT) for funding R. N. Cruz-Herbert postgraduate studies at UANL (932067).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Royal Society of Chemistry.
PY - 2022/7/7
Y1 - 2022/7/7
N2 - Alumina (Al2O3) is one of the most used supports in the chemical industry due to its exceptional thermal stability, surface area, and acidic properties. Mesoscopic structured alumina with adequate acidic properties is important in catalysis to enhance the selectivity and conversion of certain reactions and processes. This study introduces a synthetic method based on electrospinning to produce Al2O3 nanofibers (ANFs) with zeolite mordenite (MOR) nanocrystals (hereafter, hybrid ANFs) to tune the textural and surface acidity properties. The hybrid ANFs with electrospinning form a non-woven network with macropores. ANF-HMOR, i.e., ANFs containing protonated mordenite (HMOR), shows the highest total acidity of ca. 276 μmol g−1 as determined with infrared spectroscopy using pyridine as a molecular probe (IR-Py). IR-Py results reveal that Lewis acid sites are prominently present in the hybrid ANFs. Brønsted acid sites are also observed in the hybrid ANFs and are associated with the HMOR presence. The functionality of hybrid ANFs is evaluated during methanol dehydration to dimethyl ether (DME). The proof of concept reaction reveals that ANF-HMOR is the more active and selective catalyst with 87% conversion and nearly 100% selectivity to DME at 573 K. The results demonstrate that the textural properties and the acid site type and content can be modulated in hybrid ANF structures, synergistically improving the selectivity and conversion during the methanol dehydration reaction. From a broader perspective, our results promote the utilization of hybrid structural materials as a means to tune chemical reactions selectively.
AB - Alumina (Al2O3) is one of the most used supports in the chemical industry due to its exceptional thermal stability, surface area, and acidic properties. Mesoscopic structured alumina with adequate acidic properties is important in catalysis to enhance the selectivity and conversion of certain reactions and processes. This study introduces a synthetic method based on electrospinning to produce Al2O3 nanofibers (ANFs) with zeolite mordenite (MOR) nanocrystals (hereafter, hybrid ANFs) to tune the textural and surface acidity properties. The hybrid ANFs with electrospinning form a non-woven network with macropores. ANF-HMOR, i.e., ANFs containing protonated mordenite (HMOR), shows the highest total acidity of ca. 276 μmol g−1 as determined with infrared spectroscopy using pyridine as a molecular probe (IR-Py). IR-Py results reveal that Lewis acid sites are prominently present in the hybrid ANFs. Brønsted acid sites are also observed in the hybrid ANFs and are associated with the HMOR presence. The functionality of hybrid ANFs is evaluated during methanol dehydration to dimethyl ether (DME). The proof of concept reaction reveals that ANF-HMOR is the more active and selective catalyst with 87% conversion and nearly 100% selectivity to DME at 573 K. The results demonstrate that the textural properties and the acid site type and content can be modulated in hybrid ANF structures, synergistically improving the selectivity and conversion during the methanol dehydration reaction. From a broader perspective, our results promote the utilization of hybrid structural materials as a means to tune chemical reactions selectively.
KW - UT-Hybrid-D
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85131292498&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1039/d2cy00143h
DO - 10.1039/d2cy00143h
M3 - Article
SN - 2044-4753
VL - 12
SP - 4243
EP - 4254
JO - Catalysis science & technology
JF - Catalysis science & technology
IS - 13
ER -