Low-Temperature Direct Oxidation of Propane to Propylene Oxide Using Supported Subnanometer Cu Clusters
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- Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
- Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN (United States); Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH (United States)
- University of California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)
- Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN (United States)
- Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague (Czech Republic)
Propylene oxide, a key commodity of the chemical industry for a wide range of consumer products, is synthesized through sequential propane dehydrogenation and epoxidation reactions. However, the lack of a direct catalytic route from propane to propylene oxide reduces efficiency and represents a major challenge for catalysis science. Herein, we report the discovery of a highly active and selective catalyst, made of alumina-supported subnanometer copper clusters, which can directly convert propane to propylene oxide at temperatures as low as 150 °C. Moreover, at higher temperatures, on the same catalysts, the selectivity is switched to propylene. Accompanying theoretical calculations indicate that partially oxidized and/or hydroxylated clusters have low activation energies for both propane dehydrogenation and propylene epoxidation pathways, enabling direct conversion with very high selectivity for propylene oxide. The discovery of a low-temperature catalyst that can convert propane directly to propylene oxide provides an important opportunity for the development of energy-efficient and economic catalysts for this industrially critical process. Similarly, when operating at higher temperatures, these catalysts are posed as potent oxidative dehydrogenation catalysts.
- Research Organization:
- Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Czech Academy of Sciences (CAS), Prague (Czech Republic)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES); USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Materials Sciences & Engineering Division (MSE); USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Scientific User Facilities (SUF); USDOE Office of Science (SC), Office of Workforce Development for Teachers & Scientists (WDTS)
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC02-06CH11357; SC0014664; SC0019152
- OSTI ID:
- 2537948
- Journal Information:
- ACS Catalysis, Journal Name: ACS Catalysis Journal Issue: 7 Vol. 15; ISSN 2155-5435
- Publisher:
- American Chemical Society (ACS)Copyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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