Authors:

Kyla Fung

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About Paper:

Converting shale gas to liquid transportation fuels attracts attention to the pressing global issue of unsustainable fossil fuel consumption. One route to produce higher molecular weight hydrocarbons is by oligomerization of light alkenes such as propene. MFI zeolites is widely used for this reaction due to their unique shape selectivity, tunable acidity and high thermal stability. Properties such as diffusion pathlength (e.g. crystallite size) and acid site density have shown an influence in reactivity, selectivity, and deactivation for acid- catalyzed reactions attributed to diffusional limitations. Current methods to determine average crystallite size do not account for structural defects that could have an effect on the diffusional phenomena occurring during the reaction. Here, we conduct transient sorption experiments of 2,3-DMB to address this diffusional characteristics. Synthesis and characterization of a suite MFI zeolites with varied crystallite sizes and fixed molar composition (e.g. Si/Al) were conducted to validate the effectiveness of this method. Characterization techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), inductively coupled plasma (ICP), N2 physisorption, and transient sorption of 2,3-DMB were performed to evaluate the properties of the zeolites. By comparing the transient sorption behavior of these catalyst, we will aid provide a more accurate assessment of the effects of the diffusional constraints on MFI zeolites for propene oligomerization reaction. The results from this study will provide more insight into the key properties desirable for the design of catalysts for acid-catalyzed reactions.

Source:

Purdue University / 2023

Topics:

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Co-authors:

Kyla Fung