A tailored multi-functional catalyst for ultra-efficient styrene production under a cyclic redox scheme

Zhu, Xing; Gao, Yunfei; Wang, Xijun (ORCID:0000000191557653); Haribal, Vasudev; Liu, Junchen; Neal, Luke M.; Bao, Zhenghong; Wu, Zili (ORCID:0000000244683240); Wang, Hua; Li, Fanxing (ORCID:0000000267571874)

doi:10.1038/s41467-021-21374-2

DOE OSTI · 1768080

A tailored multi-functional catalyst for ultra-efficient styrene production under a cyclic redox scheme

Zhu, Xing·Gao, Yunfei·Wang, Xijun (ORCID:0000000191557653)·Haribal, Vasudev·Liu, Junchen·Neal, Luke M.·Bao, Zhenghong·Wu, Zili (ORCID:0000000244683240)·Wang, Hua·Li, Fanxing (ORCID:0000000267571874)

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Abstract

Abstract Styrene is an important commodity chemical that is highly energy and CO 2 intensive to produce. We report a redox oxidative dehydrogenation (redox-ODH) strategy to efficiently produce styrene. Facilitated by a multifunctional (Ca/Mn) 1− x O@KFeO 2 core-shell redox catalyst which acts as (i) a heterogeneous catalyst, (ii) an oxygen separation agent, and (iii) a selective hydrogen combustion material, redox-ODH auto-thermally converts ethylbenzene to styrene with up to 97% single-pass conversion and >94% selectivity. This represents a 72% yield increase compared to commercial dehydrogenation on a relative basis, leading to 82% energy savings and 79% CO 2 emission reduction. The redox catalyst is composed of a catalytically active KFeO 2 shell and a (Ca/Mn) 1− x O core for reversible lattice oxygen storage and donation. The lattice oxygen donation from (Ca/Mn) 1− x O sacrificially stabilizes Fe 3+ in the shell to maintain high catalytic activity and coke resistance. From a practical standpoint, the redox catalyst exhibits excellent long-term performance under industrially compatible conditions.

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Zhu, Xing, Gao, Yunfei, Wang, Xijun (ORCID:0000000191557653), Haribal, Vasudev, Liu, Junchen, Neal, Luke M., Bao, Zhenghong, Wu, Zili (ORCID:0000000244683240), Wang, Hua, Li, Fanxing (ORCID:0000000267571874). 2021-02-26. A tailored multi-functional catalyst for ultra-efficient styrene production under a cyclic redox scheme. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-21374-2

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