Zeolite supported metals preparation

Recent research on the elementary steps during preparation of zeolite-supported metals has helped to understand the genesis of these particles in considerable detail. For the best studied systems the goal of preparing catalysts by design has been achieved (69-77). 

Some of the most thoroughly characterized supported metal complexes are zeolite-supported metal carbonyls. These have been prepared, for example, by the adsorption of Rh(CO)2(acac) on zeolites (e.g., the faujasite zeolite NaY [26] or dealuminated zeolite Y [27]) followed by CO treatment of the resultant material (Fig. 19.3). The IR spectra (not shown, but found in [26, 27]) of the rhodium dicarbonyl represented in Fig. 19.3 are consistent with a square-planar complex (formally Rh(I)) with the Rh atom bonded to two zeolite oxygen atoms. 

Zeolites have been used for years as supports for metal catalysts [1-5]. Such catalysts are typically made by impregnation of the zeolite with an aqueous solution of a metal salt, followed by calcination and reduction in hydrogen. Because the metal particles in such catalysts are typically extremely small and nonuniform in size and shape, often being present both inside and outside the zeolite pore structure, their structures are not well understood. This structural complexity provides a fundamental motivation for preparing and investigating structurally simple zeolite-supported metals, those that are so small and uniform as to be nearly molecular in character and located almost entirely within the zeolite pores investigations of well-defined... 

The preparation of supported metal clusters by decarbonylation of supported metal carbonyl clusters is exemplified by the removal of the CO ligands from the metal frame of [Ir4(CO)i2] dispersed in NaY zeolite by treatment in hydrogen at 300°C [12] Decarbonylation of [Ir6(CO)i6] in NaY zeolite cages occurs similarly [10,12]. 

Chemistry similar to that described above for iridium clusters has also been observed for rhodium clusters. Several authors [16-18] have prepared [Rh6(CO)i6] in NaY zeolite [R1i4(CO)i2] has also been formed [18], and each of these has been decarbonylated with minimal changes in the metal frame, as shown by EXAFS spectroscopy [18]. Thus there appears to be some generality to the method of forming small clusters in zeolite cages by synthesis of stable metal carbonyl precursors followed by decarbonylation. However, the method is limited. Attempts to use it to prepare zeolite-supported platinum clusters that are structurally simple and uniform have apparently not been successfiil. The literature of platinum carbonyl clusters in zeolites is not considered here because it is still contradictory. 

A summary of zeolite-supported metal clusters prepared from metal salts is given in Table 2. Included here are only samples that have been characterized by EXAFS spectroscopy and incorporate extremely small clusters. The additional literature of zeolite-supported metals is reviewed elsewhere [1-5]. 

In summary, zeolite-supported metal clusters have now been prepared that are so small and apparently nearly uniform in size that they are regarded as nearly molecular. Preparations with metal carbonyl cluster precursors are the best known for making nearly uniform and thus nearly molecular supported clusters, but it is clear that conventional preparation methods based... 

Zeolite-supported metal clusters are a new class of catalyst made possible by syntheses involving organometallic chemistry and by precisely controlled treatment of metal complexes in zeolite cages. Elucidation of the preparation chemistry would not have been possible without the guidance of EXAFS spectroscopy. Clusters such as Ir4, Ir, and Pt (where n is about 6) are small enough to be considered quasi molecular rather than metallic. Their catalytic properties are distinct from those of metallic particles, even for structure-insensitive reactions. The zeolite pores seem to confer some properties on the clusters that are not yet well understood. 

The microwave technique has also been found to be a potential method for the preparation of the catalysts containing highly dispersed metal compounds on high-porosity materials. The process is based on thermal dispersion of active species, facilitated by microwave energy, into the internal pore surface of a microporous support. Dealuminated Y zeolite-supported CuO and CuCl sorbents were prepared by this method and used for S02 removal and industrial gas separation, respectively [5], The results demonstrated the effective preparation of supported sorbents by micro-wave heating. The method was simple, fast, and energy-efficient, because the synthesis of both sorbents required a much lower temperature and much less time compared with conventional thermal dispersion. 

High nuclearity carbonyls Rh4(CO)i2 and Rhs(CO)i6 have been extensively used as precursors for the preparation of supported rhodium catalysts. Early studies reported the use of a great variety of supports that includes metal oxides [159-166], zeolites [101, 167], polymers [168] and modified-silica surface [169]. 

Our emphasis here is not on catalyst preparation and structure, but we need to describe briefly the preparation and properties of several major catalysts amorphous silica, y-alumina, zeolites, activated carbon, and supported metals. 

Correlation among Methods of Preparation of Solid Catalysts, Their Structures, and Catalytic Activity Kiyoshi Morikawa, Takayasu Shirasaki, and Masahide Okada Catalytic Research on Zeolites J. Turkevich and Y. Ono Catalysis by Supported Metals... 

Powders possessing relatively high surface area and active sites can be intrinsically catalytically active themselves. Powders of nickel, platinum, palladium, and copper chromites find broad use in various hydrogenation reactions, whereas zeolites and metal oxide powders are used primarily for cracking and isomerization. All of the properties important for supported powdered catalysts such as particle size, resistance to attrition, pore size, and surface area are likewise important for unsupported catalysts. Since no additional catalytic species are added, it is difficult to control active site location however, intuitively it is advantageous to maximize the area of active sites within the matrix. This parameter can be influenced by preparative procedures. 

An alternative to this physical method of preparing structurally uniform metal clusters on supports involves chemistry by which molecular metal carbonyl clusters (e.g., [Rh6(CO)i6]) serve as precursors on the support. These precursors are decarbonylated with maintenance of the metal frame to give supported nanoclusters (e.g., Rh6). Advantages of this chemical preparation method are its applicability to many porous supports, such as zeolites (and not just planar surfaces) and the opportunities to use spectroscopic methods to follow the chemistry of synthesis of the precursor on the support and its subsequent decarbonylation. Zeolites, because their molecular-scale cages are part of a regular (crystalline) structure, offer the prospect of regular three-dimensional arrays of nanoclusters. 

Ir4(CO)i2 and Ir6(CO)i6, supported metal nanoclusters, 68-69 Ir4 in zeolite NaX supported metal nanoclusters, 69 theoretical investigation, 70 Iron oxide support, preparation of gold particles on, 6-7... 

Ion exchange, which as already mentioned may occur during impregnation, is an important process in the synthesis of zeolites and also in the preparation of some supported metal catalysts. 

Methods of catalyst preparation are very diverse and each catalyst may be produced via different routes. Preparation usually involves several successive steps. Many supported metal and oxide catalysts are prepared by the succession of impregnation, drying, calcination, activation zeolite catalysts are prepared by precipitation of gel, crystallisation, washing, ion exchange, drying. The properties of heterogeneous catalysts depend on all their previous history. 

The efficiency and selectivity of a supported metal catalyst is closely related to the dispersion and particle size of the metal component and to the nature of the interaction between the metal and the support. For a particular metal, catalytic activity may be varied by changing the metal dispersion and the support thus, the method of synthesis and any pre-treatment of the catalyst is important in the overall process of catalyst evaluation. Supported metal catalysts have traditionally been prepared by impregnation techniques that involve treatment of a support with an aqueous solution of a metal salt followed by calcination (4). In the Fe/ZSM-5 system, the decomposition of the iron nitrate during calcination produces a-Fe2(>3 of relatively large crystallite size (>100 X). This study was initiated in an attempt to produce highly-dispersed, thermally stable supported metal catalysts that are effective for synthesis gas conversion. The carbonyl Fe3(CO) was used as the source of iron the supports used were the acidic zeolites ZSM-5 and mordenite and the non-acidic, larger pore zeolite, 13X. 

---