The effect of Fe on the catalytic performance of Rh–Mn–Li/SiO2 catalyst: A DRIFTS study

The effect of support on RhFe/Al2O3 for ethanol synthesis via CO hydrogenation

Different alumina samples prepared with sol–gel, chemical precipitation and hydrothermal synthesis were used as supports of Fe-promoted Rh-based catalysts for ethanol synthesis via CO hydrogenation. The samples were characterized by means of N2-adsorpotion, XRD, H2-TPR, XPS, STEM, H2-TPD, DRIFTS, H2 and CO chemisorption. The results indicated that the Al2O3 prepared by hydrothermal synthesis exhibited nano-fiber morphology and constituted of mixed crystal phases, while Al2O3 prepared by sol–gel and chemical precipitation shows no changes of morphology and crystal phases compared with the commercial Al2O3. In addition, nano-fiber Al2O3-supported Rh-based catalyst shows higher ethanol selectivity, which is ascribed to the lower metal–support interaction, higher dispersion and stronger CO insertion ability.

Status and prospects in higher alcohols synthesis from syngas

Higher alcohols are important compounds with widespread applications in the chemical, pharmaceutical and energy sectors. Currently, they are mainly produced by sugar fermentation (ethanol and isobutanol) or hydration of petroleum-derived alkenes (heavier alcohols), but their direct synthesis from syngas (CO + H₂) would comprise a more environmentally-friendly, versatile and economical alternative. Research efforts in this reaction, initiated in the 1930s, have fluctuated along with the oil price and have considerably increased in the last decade due to the interest to exploit shale gas and renewable resources to obtain the gaseous feedstock. Nevertheless, no catalytic system reported to date has performed sufficiently well to justify an industrial implementation. Since the design of an efficient catalyst would strongly benefit from the establishment of synthesis-structure-function relationships and a deeper understanding of the reaction mechanism, this review comprehensively overviews syngas-based higher alcohols synthesis in three main sections, highlighting the advances recently made and the challenges that remain open and stimulate upcoming research activities. The first part critically summarises the formulations and methods applied in the preparation of the four main classes of materials, i.e., Rh-based, Mo-based, modified Fischer-Tropsch and modified methanol synthesis catalysts. The second overviews the molecular-level insights derived from microkinetic and theoretical studies, drawing links to the mechanisms of Fischer-Tropsch and methanol syntheses. Finally, concepts proposed to improve the efficiency of reactors and separation units as well as to utilise CO₂ and recycle side-products in the process are described in the third section.

Insights into structure and dynamics of (Mn,Fe)Ox-promoted Rh nanoparticles

The mutual interaction between Rh nanoparticles and manganese/iron oxide promoters in silica-supported Rh catalysts for the hydrogenation of CO to higher alcohols was analyzed by applying a combination of spectroscopy and microscopy.

Application of Response Surface Methodology and Central Composite Rotatable Design for Modeling and Optimization of Catalyst Compositions in Ethanol Synthesis via CO Hydrogenation

A statistical analysis about the effect of catalyst compositions on ethanol synthesis from CO hydrogenation was studied. The effect of Rh loading (0–3 wt.%), Fe loading (2–10 wt.%) and Mn loading (0.5–2.5 wt.%) of RhMnFe/γ-Al2O3 was studied through response surface methodology (RSM) combined with a central composite rotatable design (CCRD). A linear and a quadratic model were proposed to correlate the three variables to the two responses: CO conversion and ethanol selectivity. The predicted values for ethanol selectivity were in a good agreement with the experimental values, with R2 of 0.9779. The optimum conditions for achieving the maximum ethanol selectivity (27.8%) while limiting CO conversion at a moderate level (>20%) were as follows: Rh loading of 2.5 wt.%, Mn loading of 2.5 wt.% and Fe loading of 4 wt.%. Two representing catalysts were characterized by XRD, TPR and DRIFTS.