Dehydrogenation of n-butane to butadiene over Pt-Sn/MgO-Al 2O 3

Abstract

Butadiene demand is expected to increase rapidly, particularly in developing countries. We developed a new production process of butadiene that will allow suppliers to produce sufficient amount of butadiene. In this study, we focused on n-butane dehydrogenation, and evaluated the activity of Pt-Sn catalysts supported on Fe 2O 3-Al 2O 3, ZnO-Al 2O 3 and MgO-Al 2O 3 prepared by the co-precipitation method. Pt-Sn/MgO-Al 2O 3 (Mg/Al = 1/2) showed the highest activity and butadiene yield. Support composition of MgO-Al 2O 3 influenced the catalyst activity. The catalysts underwent deactivation owing to coke deposits over the catalyst, and their activity was recovered after regeneration treatment. Addition of Mg was effective in suppressing coke formation, as revealed by TG-DTA analysis. Reaction temperature and Sn/Pt molar ratio were changed effectively in order to increase the butadiene yield, and the results showed that Sn suppresses the side reaction over the support surface. Sintering of Pt particles was inhibited by the addition of Mg and Sn.