Dehydrogenation of ethylbenzene to styrene using Pt, Mo, and Pt-Mo catalysts supported on clay nanocomposites.

A synthetic clay (TS-1) was modified with a nonionic surfactant (IGEPAL CO-720) and magnesium oxide. The resulting solid was used as a support of Pt, Mo, and Pt-Mo catalysts. The catalysts were prepared by wet impregnation with aqueous solutions of H(2)PtCl(6)6H(2)O and (NH(4))(6)-Mo(7)O(24)4H(2)O. In both monometallic and bimetallic catalysts, the molybdenum content was 3 wt% and the platinum content was 0.5 or 1 wt%. The surface area of the starting material was 454 m(2)/g and after the modification treatment with IGEPAL it increased up to 649 m(2)/g, while platinum and molybdenum catalysts showed surface areas between 495 and 550 m(2)/g. The reduction profiles showed different Pt and Mo species and the existence of metal-support interactions. The reduced catalysts were more active than those in the unreduced form. The most active catalysts for the ethylbenzene dehydrogenation were those of monometallic Pt (0.5 and 1 wt%) with a maximum styrene conversion around 50%. The presence of Mo species masked Pt atoms and reduced the activity.