Abd El-Aziz A. Said, Mohamed Abd El-Aal, Asmaa Mohamed, Mohamed N. Goda
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Abstract
In this study, Egyptian red clay (ERC) was modified with various percentages of ZrO2 nanoparticles using a chemical precipitation method to test its effectiveness for methanol dehydration into dimethyl ether (DME). The most active catalyst was treated with 5–10 wt. % SO42− via impregnation. The physicochemical characteristics of the catalysts were examined using XRD, XRF, FTIR, N2-sorption, and TEM analysis. Catalyst acidity was assessed through isopropyl alcohol dehydration and interactions with pyridine and 2,6-dimethyl pyridine. Results demonstrated that, the catalytic performance of the ERC was greatly influenced with % ZrO2, catalyst weight and sulfation process. The 7% SO42−/20% ZrO2/ERC catalyst offered a maximum DME yield of ~ 94% at 250 °C with 100% selectivity to DME. This catalyst offered a long-term stability over seven days with almost the same activity and selectivity. Brønsted acidic sites with weak and intermediate strengths were responsible for such enhancement. Our findings highlight the critical roles of specific surface area and acidity in enhancing catalytic performance, positioning ERC-supported zirconia modified with SO42− as a cost-effective, environmentally friendly, and recyclable catalyst for DME production.
期刊介绍：
Catalysis Letters aim is the rapid publication of outstanding and high-impact original research articles in catalysis. The scope of the journal covers a broad range of topics in all fields of both applied and theoretical catalysis, including heterogeneous, homogeneous and biocatalysis.
The high-quality original research articles published in Catalysis Letters are subject to rigorous peer review. Accepted papers are published online first and subsequently in print issues. All contributions must include a graphical abstract. Manuscripts should be written in English and the responsibility lies with the authors to ensure that they are grammatically and linguistically correct. Authors for whom English is not the working language are encouraged to consider using a professional language-editing service before submitting their manuscripts.
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