Zeolites active site

Abstract The ab initio pseudopotential plane wave DPT simulation of the structure and properties of zeolite active sites and elementary catalytic reactions are discussed through the example of the protonation of water and the first step in the protolytic cracking mechanism of saturated hydrocarbons. 

Cejka, J. and Wichterlova, B. 2002. Acid-catalyzed synthesis of mono- and dialkyl benzenes over zeolites active sites, zeolite topology, and reaction mechanisms. Catal. Rev. 44 375-421. 

I. M. Gerzeliev, 1994, Application of iodometry for zeolite active sites characterization and modification, in Zeolites and Related Microporous Materials State of the Art 1994, eds J. Weitkamp, H.G. Karge, H. Pfeifer and W. Holderich, Vol. 84 of Studies in Surface Science and Catalysis (Elsevier, Amsterdam) p. 717-724. 

The D-USY catalyst presented high cracking activity. The results indicate that both nickel and vanadium poison zeolite activity sites. But vanadium poisons preferentially zeolite activities sites for the cracking reaction. Selectivity Sc2-c5 is 49.8 for D-USY, decreased to 42,6 for 1-Ni catalyst and with vanadium adding (from 8Ni-lV to INi-lV catalysts) Sc2-c5 decreases. For the 1-V catalyst selectivity Sc2-c5 is 27,9, 40% lower than D-USY catalyst. This result also confirms a nickel vanadium interaction. The isomerization reaction also increases on 1-V catalyst. This behavior can be related to vanadium acid species formation [8]. 

The problem of embedding is not limited to zeolitic active sites. It has also been discussed in connection with the determination of active sites in enzymes. Here a method combining quantum Mechanics (QM) with classical Molecular Dynamics (MD) is used. This (QM/MD) method is based on a partition of... 

Anotlier important modification metliod is tire passivation of tire external crystallite surface, which may improve perfonnance in shape selective catalysis (see C2.12.7). Treatment of zeolites witli alkoxysilanes, SiCl or silane, and subsequent hydrolysis or poisoning witli bulky bases, organophosphoms compounds and arylsilanes have been used for tliis purjDose [39]. In some cases, tire improved perfonnance was, however, not related to tire masking of unselective active sites on tire outer surface but ratlier to a narrowing of tire pore diameters due to silica deposits. 

A major step in catalyst development was the introduction of crystalline zeolitic, or molecular sieve catalysts. Their activity is very high, some of the active sites being estimated at 10,000 times the effectiveness of amorphous silica-... 

Aluminum distribution in zeolites is also important to the catalytic activity. An inbalance in charge between the silicon atoms in the zeolite framework creates active sites, which determine the predominant reactivity and selectivity of FCC catalyst. Selectivity and octane performance are correlated with unit cell size, which in turn can be correlated with the number of aluminum atoms in the zeolite framework. ... 

Unit Cell Size (UCS). The UCS is a measure of aluminum sites or the total potential acidity per unit cell. The negatively-charged aluminum atoms are sources of active sites in the zeolite. Silicon atoms do not... 

Sodium decreases the hydrothermal stability of the zeolite. It also reacts with the zeolite acid sites to reduce catalyst activity. In the regenerator, sodium is mobile. Sodium ions tend to neutralize the strongest acid sites. In a dealuminated zeolite, where the UCS is low (24.22°A to 24.25°A), the sodium can have an adverse affect on the gasoline octane (Figure 3-7). The loss of octane is attributed to the drop in the number of strong acid sites. 

The higher activity comes from greater strength and organization of the active sites in the zeolites. 

Microporous catalysts are heterogeneous catalysts used in catalytic converters and for many other specialized applications, because of their very large surface areas and reaction specificity. Zeolites, for example, are microporous aluminosilicates (see Section 14.19) with three-dimensional structures riddled with hexagonal channels connected by tunnels (Fig. 13.38). The enclosed nature of the active sites in zeolites gives them a special advantage over other heterogeneous catalysts, because an intermediate can be held in place inside the channels until the products form. Moreover, the channels allow products to grow only to a particular size. 

The aim of the newly introduced mesoporosity is to enhance the utilization of the microporous network by improved accessibihty of the active sites that are mostly present in the micropores. Although numerous papers have reported on the improved catalytic performance of desihcated zeolites in catalysis (details in Section 2.4.5), only few works are available that reaUy tackle the hierarchical nature of the desihcated zeohtes and demonstrate that selective sihcon removal leads to an enhanced physical transport in the zeohte crystals. 

It is not the catalytic activity itself that make zeolites particularly interesting, but the location of the active site within the well-defined geometry of a zeolite. Owing to the geometrical constraints of the zeolite, the selectivity of a chemical reaction can be increased by three mechanisms reactant selectivity, product selectivity, and transition state selectivity. In the case of reactant selectivity, bulky components in the feed do not enter the zeolite and will have no chance to react. When several products are formed within the zeolite, and only some are able to leave the zeolite, or some leave the zeolite more rapidly, we speak about product selectivity. When the geometrical constraints of the active site within the zeolite prohibit the formation of products or transition states leading to certain products, transition state selectivity applies. 

The stability of catalyst is one of the most important criteria to evaluate its quality. The influence of time on stream on the conversion of n-heptane at SSO C is shown in Fig. 5. The conversion of n-heptane decreases faster on HYl than on FIYs with time, so the question is Could the formation of coke on the catalyst inhibit diffusion of reactant into the caves and pores of zeolite and decrease the conversion According to Hollander [8], coke was mainly formed at the beginning of the reaction, and the reaction time did not affect the yield of coke. Hence, this decrease might be caused by some impurities introduced during the catalyst synthesis. These impurities could be sintered and cover active sites to make the conversion of n-heptane on HYl decrease faster. 

Figure 4.1. Representation of the pore structure of HZSM5, one of the most important zeolites industrially. The vertical cylinders represent one pore network, and the other cylinders an interconnecting network. The narrow pores, and their almost complete uniformity, means that only some molecules can enter. Others are excluded, and cannot react at the active sites, which are found within the structure. Thus, the reactivity of a molecule is determined by its shape and size, rather than by its electronic properties. Such a situation is almost unique, with the only exception being enzymes, where molecules must fit into the enzyme active site in order to react.

Zeolites are used in various applications such as household detergents, desiccants and as catalysts. In the mid-1960s, Rabo and coworkers at Union Carbide and Plank and coworkers at Mobil demonstrated that faujasitic zeolites were very interesting solid acid catalysts. Since then, a wealth of zeolite-catalyzed reactions of hydrocarbons has been discovered. Eor fundamental catalysis they offer the advantage that the crystal structure is known, and that the catalytically active sites are thus well defined. The fact that zeolites posses well-defined pore systems in which the catalytically active sites are embedded in a defined way gives them some similarity to enzymes. 

The oxidation of phenol, ortho/meta cresols and tyrosine with Oj over copper acetate-based catalysts at 298 K is shown in Table 3 [7]. In all the cases, the main product was the ortho hydroxylated diphenol product (and the corresponding orthoquinones). Again, the catalytic efficiency (turnover numbers) of the copper atoms are higher in the encapsulated state compared to that in the "neat" copper acetate. From a linear correlation observed [7] between the concentration of the copper acetate dimers in the molecular sieves (from ESR spectroscopic data) and the conversion of various phenols (Fig. 5), we had postulated [8] that dimeric copper atoms are the active sites in the activation of dioxygen in zeolite catalysts containing encapsulated copper acetate complexes. The high substratespecificity (for mono-... 

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