Review on recent NMR Results

Understanding Brønsted-Acid Catalyzed Monomolecular Reactions of Alkanes in Zeolite Pores by Combining Insights from Experiment and Theory

Acidic zeolites are effective catalysts for the cracking of large hydrocarbon molecules into lower molecular weight products required for transportation fuels. However, the ways in which the zeolite structure affects the catalytic activity at Brønsted protons are not fully understood. One way to characterize the influence of the zeolite structure on the catalysis is to study alkane cracking and dehydrogenation at very low conversion, conditions for which the kinetics are well defined. To understand the effects of zeolite structure on the measured rate coefficient (k_app ), it is necessary to identify the equilibrium constant for adsorption into the reactant state (K_ads-H+ ) and the intrinsic rate coefficient of the reaction (k_int ) at reaction temperatures, since k_app is proportional to the product of K_ads-H+ and k_int . We show that K_ads-H+ cannot be calculated from experimental adsorption data collected near ambient temperature, but can, however, be estimated accurately from configurational-bias Monte Carlo (CBMC) simulations. Using monomolecular cracking and dehydrogenation of C₃ -C₆ alkanes as an example, we review recent efforts aimed at elucidating the influence of the acid site location and the zeolite framework structure on the observed values of k_app and its components, K_ads-H+ and k_int .

TiO2 Nanoparticles in Mesoporous TUD-1: Synthesis, Characterization and Photocatalytic Performance in Propane Oxidation

A series of TiO2-TUD-1 samples was synthesized with a variable Ti loading in the range Si/Ti = 100, 20, 2.5, and 1.6, by using a one-pot surfactant-free procedure. The materials obtained were characterized by elemental analysis; X-ray diffraction (XRD); N2 sorption measurements; high-resolution TEM (HR-TEM); 29Si NMR, UV-visible and Raman spectroscopy. As a function of increasing metal loading either isolated Ti atoms, or (above a Ti loading of approximately 2.5 wt- %) combinations of isolated Ti atoms and anatase (TiO2) nanoparticles were obtained; both were incorporated in the highly porous siliceous matrix. The photocatalytic performance of these materials was tested by studying the propane oxidation process following irradiation at lambda = 365 nm, selectively activating the anatase nanoparticles. In comparison to commercial anatase powder, TiO2 nanoparticles in TUD-1 showed high photochemical selectivity towards acetone, the sample with a Si/Ti ratio of 1.6 being the most selective. Size and confinement effects are consistent with the difference in performance of the TUD-1 materials and TiO2, limiting the number of electron transfers available for each propane molecule.

Investigation on the chain-to-chain and chain-to-open-framework transformations of two one-dimensional aluminophosphate chains

Using ethylenediamine as a template, two one-dimensional (1-D) aluminophosphate compounds [AlP(2)O(8)H][NH(3)CH(2)CH(2)NH(3)] (1) and [AlP(2)O(8)][NH(3)CH(2)CH(2)NH(3)][NH(4)] (2) have been prepared from a gel system: 1.0:x:y:44 Al(i-PrO)(3)-H(3)PO(4)-en-EG (x = 3.0-9.0, y = 1.0-11.0). Compound 1 consists of edge-sharing four-membered ring (MR) chains, denoted as AlPO-ESC, and compound 2 consists of corner-sharing 4-MR chains, denoted as AlPO-CSC. The molar ratio of en:H(3)PO(4) in the starting gel has an important influence on the final product. If en:H(3)PO(4) > or = 1, AlPO-CSC is obtained, while if en:H(3)PO(4) < 1, AlPO-ESC is formed. These two chains can transform to each other upon addition of some extra amount of en or H(3)PO(4) to the reaction mixture in which AlPO-ESC or AlPO-CSC is crystallized. On the basis of XRD and (27)Al and (31)P MAS NMR analyses, a possible chain-to-chain transformation mechanism is proposed. The corner-sharing 4-MR chains of AlPO-CSC, as well as the edge-sharing 4-MR chains of AlPO-ESC can be assembled to 3-D open-framework compound NiAlP(2)O(8).C(2)N(2)H(9) through Ni(2+) cations. It is noted that AlPO-CSC remains in the structure of NiAlP(2)O(8).C(2)N(2)H(9). It is believed that AlPO-ESC might be first transformed to AlPO-CSC followed by the assembly to 3-D open-framework of NiAlP(2)O(8).C(2)N(2)H(9) through Ni(2+) cations.