Light hydrocarbons oxidative dehydrogenation

The most difficult group of hydrocarbons to oxidize and one which until recently has resisted attempts at selective mild catalytic activation is the alkanes. Among those transformations currently desired (Fig. 30) are direct conversion of methane to methanol, formaldehyde, or higher hydrocarbons direct hydroxylation of light alkanes and smooth selective oxidative dehydrogenation of alkanes. 

The low cost of light alkanes and the fact that they are generally environmentally acceptable because of their low chemical reactivity have provided incentives to use them as feedstock for chemical production. A notable example of the successful use of alkane is the production of maleic anhydride by the selective oxidation of butane instead of benzene (7). However, except for this example, no other successful processes have been reported in recent years. A potential area for alkane utilization is the conversion to unsaturated hydrocarbons. Since the current chemical industry depends heavily on the use of unsaturated hydrocarbons as starting material, if alkanes can be dehydrogenated with high yields, they could become alternate feedstock. 

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