One-Pot Synthesis of Mixed-Phase MoVTeNbOx Catalysts for Selective Oxidation of Propane to Acrylic Acid

One-pot hydrothermal synthesis assisted by sodium citrate and citric acid is developed to fabricate mixed-phased MoVTeNbO_x catalysts with different phase compositions for selective oxidation of propane to acrylic acid. Structures of various catalysts are comprehensively characterized. Interfacial interactions occur among the M1 and M2 phases of mixed-phase MoVTeNbO_x catalysts to exert synergistic effects on the selective production of acrylic acid. Various mixed-phase MoVTeNbO_x catalysts exhibit the same type of active site on the M1-phase component, with a significantly enhanced ability to adsorb and activate propane. The propane conversion increases linearly with the density of surface site for propane adsorption, while the propene selectivity increases linearly with the density of surface site for propene adsorption. Among the synthesized catalysts, a MoVTeNbO_x catalyst composed of 35.3 wt % M1 phase, 19.2 wt % M2 phase, and 45.7 wt % amorphous phase exhibits the largest density of active site and consequently the best catalytic performance with 38.9% propane conversion and 71.2% acrylic acid selectivity at 380 °C.