Influence of Intercalation-Exfoliation-Reduction Technique towards the Physico-Chemical of VPO Catalysts

Abstract

Four VPO catalysts were synthesized through intercalation and exfoliation in various alcohols and subsequent reduction of the exfoliated VOPO4sheets with various alcohols to produce VOHPO4⋅0.5H2O. The resulting VOHPO4⋅0.5H2O that undergoes the intercalation-exfoliation-reduction (IER) process will be further activated into VPO catalysts, and addition of 1 mole % Bi(NO3)3⋅5H2O in the first stage of this experiment has also being investigated. The synthesized materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), and temperature-programmed reduction (TPR) in H2. Catalytic evaluation of the IER-treated and Bi-doped VPO catalysts was also studied on microreactor. The VPO catalyst produced through IER using 2-butanol and ethanol with addition of Bi, IERC(2Bu-Et)RBi1, gave the highest MA selectivity due to reactive O2−species released from the additional crystalline V5+phase formed by doping 1% bismuth as promoter (O2−-V5+pair) at relative lower temperature. Nevertheless, the VPO catalyst produced through IER using isobutanol, IERC(isoBu), gave the highest activity due to high amount of reactive O−species released from V4+phase (O−-V4+pair) whereby the IERC(isoBu) catalyst synthesized consists of high percentage of V4+(93 %).