Effects of structures of molybdenum catalysts on selectivity in gas-phase propylene oxidation

Molybdenum-based catalysts for the gas-phase oxidation of propylene with air were investigated. Various types of silica-supported molybdenum oxide and molybdenum-bismuth mixed oxide cata- lysts were prepared from inorganic and organometallic molybdenum precursors using wet impregnation and physical vapor deposition methods. The epoxidation activities of the prepared cata- lysts showed direct correlations with their nanostructures, which were identified using transmission electron microscopy. The appearance of a partly or fully crystalline molybdenum oxide phase, which interacted poorly with the silica support, decreased the selectivity for propylene oxide for- mation to below 10%; non-crystalline octahedrally coordinated molybdenum species anchored on the support gave propylene oxide formations greater than 55%, with 11% propylene conversion. Electrochemical characterization of molybdenum oxides with various morphologies showed the importance of structural defects. Direct promotion by bismuth of the epoxidation reactivities over molybdenum oxides is disputed.

Kinetics and mechanistic insights into the active sites of Au catalysts for selective propylene oxidation

Identification of the catalytically active sites emerges as the prerequisite for an atomic-level comprehensive understanding and further rational design of highly efficient catalysts.Here,we demonstrate a kinetics strategy to identify the active sites of Au catalyst for the disentanglement of geometric and electronic effects on the selective oxidation of propylene to acrolein.Both the Ti-containing titanium-silicalite-1(TS-1)and Ti-free silicalite-1(S-1)were employed as supports to immobilize Au catalysts,which were investigated by a combination of multiple characterization,kinetics analysis,crystal structure modelling.The Au(111)sites are identified as the main active site for acrolein formation,while their electronic effects are highly relevant to the presence or absence of Ti.Moreover,propylene epoxide(PO)formation mainly involves the co-participation of Au and Ti sites,the proximity between Au and Ti sites is found to have less influences on PO formation in a certain distance.In comparison,acrolein is very likely to generate over Au(111)sites via the hydrogen-assisted O_(2) activation to oxygenated species for its oxidizing propylene.The insights gained here could guide the design and preparation of Au catalysts for selective propylene oxidation.

Gas-phase epoxidation of propylene by molecular oxygen over Ag-Cu-Cl/BaCO_3 catalyst:Effects of Cu and Cl loadings

Ag‐Cu‐Cl/BaCO3 catalysts with different Cl and Cu loadings, prepared by the reduction deposition impregnation method, were investigated for gas‐phase epoxidation of propylene by molecular oxygen and characterized by X‐ray diffraction, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy and O2 temperatureprogrammed desorption. Ag‐Cu‐Cl/BaCO3 catalyst with 0.036 wt% Cu and 0.060 wt% Cl exhibitedthe highest catalytic performance for gas‐phase epoxidation of propylene by molecular oxygen. Apropylene oxide selectivity of 83.7% and propylene conversion of 1.2% were achieved under thereaction conditions of 20% C3H6‐10% O2‐70% N2, 200 °C, 0.1 MPa and 3000 h?1. Increasing the Clloading allowed Ag to ensemble easier, whereas changing the Cu loading showed little effect on Agcrystallite size. The appropriate Cl loading of Ag‐Cu‐Cl/BaCO3 catalyst can reduce the dissociationadsorption of oxygen to atomic oxygen species leading to the combustion of propylene to CO2, whichbenefits epoxidation of propylene by molecular oxygen. Excessive Cl loading of Ag‐Cu‐Cl/BaCO3catalyst decreases propylene conversion and propylene oxide selectivity remarkably because of Clpoisoning. The appropriate Cu loading of Ag‐Cu‐Cl/BaCO3 catalyst is efficient for the epoxidation ofpropylene by molecular oxygen, and an excess Cu loading decreases propylene oxide selectivitybecause the aggregation of Cu species increases the exposed surfaces of Ag nanoparticles, whichwas shown by slight increases in atomic oxygen species adsorbed. The appropriate loadings of Cu and Cl of Ag‐Cu‐Cl/BaCO3 catalyst are important to strike the balance between molecular oxygen and atomic oxygen species to create a favorable epoxidation of propylene by molecular oxygen.

Selective propylene epoxidation in liquid phase using highly dispersed Nb catalysts incorporated in mesoporous silicates

Selective propylene epoxidation to propylene oxide(PO) with hydrogen peroxide(H_2O_2) was carried out in a catalytic semi-batch reactor.High propylene epoxidation activity(44 h^(-1)) was observed over Nb based mesoporous silicate materials Nb-TUD-1 under mild operating conditions.The physical and chemical properties of the Nb based silicates characterized using BET,FTIR,TPD,TEM and UV–Vis revealed that the site isolation and surface acidity are crucial for PO production.Catalyst synthesis methods were investigated for their effects on PO productivity,PO selectivity and H_2O_2 utilization efficiency.It is found that Nb-TUD-1 material synthesized by the sol–gel method is more active and selective than impregnated materials for liquid phase propylene epoxidation.Surface characterization confirms that thus synthesized Nb-TUD-1 catalysts have more Lewis acidity and less Bronsted acidity compared to the catalysts by impregnation.

Small-sized cuprous oxide species on silica boost acrolein formation via selective oxidation of propylene

Oxide-supported copper-containing materials have attracted considerable research attention as promising candidates for acrolein formation.Nevertheless,the elucidation of the structure-performance relationships for these systems remains a scientific challenge.In this work,copper oxide clusters deposited on a high-surface-area silica support were synthesized via a deposition-precipitation approach and exhibited remarkable catalytic reactivity(up to 25.5%conversion and 66.8%selectivity)in the propylene-selective oxidation of acrolein at 300℃.Aberration-corrected high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy combined with X-ray absorption fine structure measurements of the catalyst before and after the reaction confirmed the transformation of the small-sized copper oxide(CuO)clusters into cuprous oxide(Cu2O)clusters.With the aid of in situ X-ray diffraction and in situ dual beam Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(DB-FTIR),the allyl intermediate(CH2=CHCH2*)was clearly observed,along with the as-formed Cu2O species.The intermediate can react with oxygen atoms from neighboring Cu2O species to form acrolein during the catalytic process,and the small-sized Cu2O clusters play a crucial role in the generation of acrolein via the selective oxidation of propylene.

Study on Chemisorption, Catalytic Behavior, and Stability of Supported Au Catalyst for the Propylene Epoxidation Reaction

The supported Au/TiO2 and Au/TiO2-SiO2 catalysts were prepared by deposition precipitation method. The TPD study reveals that propylene oxide competes with propylene to be adsorbed on the same adsorptive center-Ti^n＋ site on the surface of the catalyst and that the adisorbing capacity of the catalyst for propylene oxide is larger than that for propylene. Catalytic behavior for propylene epoxidation with H2 and O2 was tested in a micro-reactor. Under typical conditions, the selectivity for propylene oxide is over 87%. The TG curves show that PO successive oxidation cause carbon deposition on the active center and deactivation of the Au catalysts. Because the amounts of Tin＋ site decrease significantly, and consequently the separation between Ti^n＋ sites increases, the Au/TiO2-SiO2 catalyst is more stable than Au/TiO2.

XPS,Chemical Trapping, and DRFTIR Study on Mechanism of By-Products Formation in Selective (AMM)Oxidation of Propylene on MoO_3 and γ-Bi_2MoO_6

XPS and chemical trapping experments with H2, NH3, and CH3I as trapping agents were carried out for studying the adsorption of propylene over MoO3 or r-Bi2MoO6. The results show that the fragmentation of carbon chain takes place during the adsorption of propylene through breaking C -C double bond and C-C bond on Mo2+ and the adjacent lattice oxygen, leading to formation of the oxygen- or nitrogen-containing by-products of C1 and C2 species. Diffuse-Reflection Fourier Transform Infrared (DRFTIR) Spectroscopy was used to study the surface species formed during the chemisorption and reaction of propylene over y-Bi2MoO6 at a lower temperature. The results that C1, C2 adspecies were detected by DRFTIR at 175℃ are consistent with the results of XPS and chemical trapping experiments, whlle the results at 50℃ Grasselli et al.

Monte Carlo Simulation of Propylene Selective Oxidation and Ammoxidation overβ-Bi2Mo2O9 Catalyst under Anaerobic Condition

A random walk Monte Carlo （RWMC） simulation model of catalytic particle was established on the basis of the structures of bismuth molybdate catalysts and mechanisms of catalytic reactions with propylene selective oxidation and ammoxidation. The simulation results show that rationality of the RWMC model is proved on the basis of pulse experimental data. One of the most remarkable factors affecting catalytic behavior is the transfer of bulk lattice oxygen, which decides the rate of ammonia-consuming and propylene-consuming. The selectivity of main products reaches the maximum after the reduction of catalysts to a certain degree. It is inferred that catalytic performance improves greatly if the ratio of capacity for dehydrogenation from adsorbed propylene molecule on catalytically active site of molybdenum metal-imido group （Mo=NH） to that on catalytically active site of molybdenum metal-oxo group （Mo=O） becomes much higher.

Synthesis of propylene glycol ethers from propylene oxide catalyzed by environmentally friendly ionic liquids

A series of acetate ionic liquids were synthesized using a typical two‐step method.The ionic liquids were used as environmentally benign catalysts in the production of propylene glycol ethers from propylene oxide and alcohols under mild conditions.The basic strengths of the ionic liquids were evaluated by determination of their Hammett functions,obtained using ultraviolet‐visible spectroscopy,and the relationship between their catalytic activities and basicities was established.The catalytic efficiencies of the ionic liquids were higher than that of the traditional basic catalyst NaOH.This can be attributed to the involvement of a novel reaction mechanism when these ionic liquids are used.A possible electrophilic‐nucleophilic dual activation mechanism was proposed and confirmed using electrospray ionization quadrupole time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry.In addition,the effects of significant reaction parameters such as concentration of catalyst,molar ratio of alcohol to propylene oxide,reaction temperature,and steric hindrance of the alcohol were investigated in detail.

INFLUENCE OF DIALKYLZINC IN RARE-EARTH TERNARY CATALYST ONTHE COPOLYMERIZATION OF CARBON DIOXIDE AND PROPYLENE OXIDE

Rare-earth ternary catalysts Y（CCl3COO）3-ZnR2-glycerin were prepared for the copolymerization of carbon dioxide and propylene oxide （PO）, where dialkylzincs （ZnR2） were diethylzinc, di（n-propyl）zinc, di（n-butyl）zinc, di（i-propyl）zinc, di（i-butyl）zinc, di（s-butyl）zinc,respectively. The Y（CCl3COO）3-ZnR2-glycerin catalysts displayed the highest catalytic activity at the molar ratio of Y（CCl3COO）3：ZnR2：glycerin = 1：20：10. In the same copolymerization condition, catalysts containing dialkylzincs with branched alkyl group showed lower catalytic activity than that with primary alkyl group. For those catalysts including dialkylzincs with primary alkyl group, their catalytic activity decreases with increasing number of carbon atom in the alkyl group with the following sequence： Y（CCl3COO）3-ZnEt2-glycerin 〉 Y（CCl3COO）3-Zn（n- Pr）2-glycerin〉Y（CCl3COO）3-Zn（n-Bu）2-glycerin. However, the alkyl group in the dialkylzinc does not influence the insertion of PO into the propagation chain end.

Preparation and Electrocatalytic Activity of Polyaniline-poly(propylene oxide)

A novel copolymer of polyaniline-poly(propylene oxide) (PAN-PPO) was prepared by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and characterized by FTIR and SEM. It showed good electroactivity for methanol oxidation in H2SO4 solution.

Electrocatalytic Synthesis of Propylene Carbonate from CO_2 and Propylene Oxide

The electrocatalytic synthesis of propylene carbonate（PC） from CO2 and propylene oxide（PO） was studied under mild conditions（PCO2=1.01×105 Pa, t=25 ℃）. Influences of solvents, supporting electrolytes, the passed charge, the nature of electrodes and the current density（j） on the yield of PC were investigated to optimize the electrolytic conditions, with the maximal yield to be 46.2%, the selectivity of propylene carbonate is 100%. The reduction of propylene oxide in the absence and presence of CO2 was examined by cyclic voltammetry. The mechanism of the reaction initiated by the synergistic effect of halides ions of supporting electrolytes with nucleophilicity and the metal ions from scarification anode with Lewis acid acidity was proposed on the basis of our results.

RANDOM COPOLYMER OF PROPYLENE OXIDE AND ETHYLENE OXIDE PREPARED BY DOUBLE METAL CYANIDE COMPLEX CATALYST

Copolymerization of propylene oxide (PO) and ethylene oxide (EO) using double metal cyanide (DMC) complex as the catalyst was carried out. The structure of random copolymers was confirmed by C-13-NMR and IR spectra. H-1-NMR analysis shows that the EO content in the copolymer is the same as that in the initial monomer feed. Moderate molecular weight copolymers with various EO content were obtained and their values of molecular weight distribution (MWD) fell in the range of 1.21-1.55. It was found that the molecular weight of copolymers is controlled by the mass ratio of EO+PO to initiator moles used, The reaction rate as well as polymer yield decrease with increasing EO content in the feed composition.

Design and optimization of an integrated process for the purification of propylene oxide and the separation of propylene glycol by-product

It is difficult to separate the methanol and hydrocarbons in the propylene oxide(PO)purification process due to their forming azeotrope.As for this,a novel PO separation process,in that the deionized water is employed as extractant and 1,2-propylene glycol(MPG)that is formed from the PO hydrolysis reaction is recovered,is presented in this work.The salient feature of this process is that both the non-catalyzed reactions of PO hydrolysis to form MPG and dipropylene glycol(DPG)are simultaneously considered and MPG by-product with high purity is obtained in virtue of the deionized water as reflux liquid and side take-off in MPG column.In addition,the ionic liquid(IL)extractant is screened through the conductorlike screening model for segment activity coefficient(COSMO-SAC)and the comparisons of separation efficiency between the IL and normal octane(nC_(8))extractant for the separation of PO and 2-methylpentane are made.With the non-random two-liquid(NRTL)thermodynamic model,the simulation and optimization design for the full flow sheet are performed and the effects of the key operation parameters such as solvent ratio,theoretical stages,feeding stage etc.on separation efficiency are detailedly discussed.The results show that the mass purity and the mass yield of PO can be up to 99.99%and 99.0%,and the condenser duty,reboiler duty and PO loss in the process with IL extractant can be decreased by 69.66%,30.21%and 78.86%compared to ones with nC_(8).The total annual cost(TAC)calculation also suggests that the TAC would be significantly reduced if using IL in replace of nC_(8) for the investigated process.The presented results would provide a useful guide for improving the quality of PO product and the economic efficiency of industrial plant.

Preparation and Electrocatalytic Activity of Polyaniline-poly (Propylene Oxide) Modified by Pt Nanoparticles

The preparation and electrocatalytic activity of polyaniline-poly （ propylene oxide ） （ PAN-PPO ） modified by Pt particles （ Pt/ PAN-PPO ） were investigated. Pt/ PAN-PPO was characterized by scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and energy dispersive spectroscopy （ EDS ）. Pt particles on PAN-PPO were in the nanometer range, and dispersed in a three-dimensional distribution on the surface of PAN-PPO film. Compared with polyaniline and glassy carbon modified with Pt particles under the same conditions, Pt/PAN-PPO exhibited a high electrocatalytic activity for lysine oxidation.

Simulation and design of a heat-integrated double-effect reactive distillation process for propylene glycol methyl ether production

A double-effect reactive distillation(DERD)process was proposed for the production of propylene glycol methyl ether from propylene oxide and methanol to overcome the shortcoming of low selectivity and high-energy consumption in the tubular plug-flow reactor.A single-column reactive distillation(RD)process was conducted under optimized operating conditions based on sensitivity analysis as a reference.The results demonstrated that the proposed DERD process is able to achieve more than 95%selectivity of the desired product.After that,a design approach of the DERD process with an objective of the minimum operating cost was proposed to achieve further energy savings in the RD process.The proposed DERD configuration can provide a large energy-savings by totally utilization of the overhead vapor steam in the high-pressure RD column.A comparison of the single-column RD process revealed that the proposed DERD process can reduce the operating cost and the total annual cost of 25.3%and 30.7%,respectively,even though the total capital cost of DERD process is larger than that of the RD process.

Impermeability Research of Autoclaved Propylene Oxide Sludge Shell-aggregate Concrete

We aimed to reuse the propylene oxide sludge(POS).Propylene oxide sludge shell-aggregate(POSS-A)and propylene oxide sludge gradient shell-aggregate(POSGS-A)whose main hydrated phase is tobermorite were successfully manufactured by the hydrothermal synthesis of POS and silica materials under the condition of autoclaved(180℃,1.0 MPa)curing.Influences of pre-wetting time of coarse aggregate and pressure application mode on the different concretes were investigated.The experimental results show that the concrete with POSS-A as coarse aggregate(POSS-A concrete),the concrete with POS gradient shell-aggregate as coarse aggregate(POSGS-A concrete),sintered aggregate concrete and common concrete,all have excellent impermeability performance whatever the pre-wetting time of coarse aggregate is 0.5 h or 24 h,and the pre-wetting time of coarse aggregate has a negligible influence on the concrete.The influence degree of pressure application mode on the impermeability performance of the sintered aggregate concrete is the greatest among three kinds of concrete,which has a negligible influence on impermeability performance of the other concretes.POSGS-A can be used as a green building light aggregate in hydraulic concrete.

Catalytic Formation of Propylene Carbonate from Supercritical Carbon Dioxide/Propylene Oxide Mixture

Propylene carbonate was synthesized from supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2)/ propylene oxide mixture with phthalocyaninatoaluminium chloride (ClAlPc)/ tetrabutylstmmonium bromide (n-Bu4NBr) as catalyst. The high rate of reaction was attributed to rapid diffusion and the high miscibility of propylene oxide in SC-CO2 under employed conditions. Various reaction periods present different formation rate of propylene carbonate, mainly due to the existence of phase change during the reaction. The experimental results demonstrate that SC-CO2 could be used as not only an environmentally benign solvent but also a carbon precursor in synthesis.

Copolymerization Kinetics of Ethylene Oxide and Propylene Oxide

The copolymerization kinetics of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide in an atomizing-circulation reactorunder semi-continuous operation is studied which is of great importance for molecular designation. The kineticparameters are obtained by numerical optimization of the kinetic model.

Ring-opening Copolymerization of Adipic Anhydride and Propylene Oxide Catalyzed by Yttrium Triflates

The ring-opening copolymerization of adipic anhydride with propylene oxide was carried out with yttrium triflates as a catalyst. Poly（propylene adipate） could be synthesized by controlling the copolymerization conditions. The copolymerization procedure was tracked by ^1H NMR analyses.