IrGa Bimetallic Catalyst with Atomical Metal Dispersion for Propane Dehydrogenation with High Stability

Graphical IrGa/Al 2 O 3 catalyst with atomical metal dispersion exhibits excellent non-oxidative propane dehydrogenation performance with a propylene selectivity of 98 % at an 18 % propane conversion for 100 hours, comparable to that of classical Pt-based catalysts. An enhanced synergetic effect between metallic Ir and partially reduced GaO x oxide was found. Industrial catalysts for alkane dehydrogenation to olefins suffer from fast deactivation due to the coking and sintering of active metal under harsh reaction conditions. Herein, iridium, a noble metal rarely applied in C−H activation, has been employed to construct an ultra-stable IrGa/Al 2 O 3 catalyst with atomical metal dispersion for non-oxidative propane dehydrogenation (PDH). A synergetic effect between metallic Ir and GaO x is discovered which contributes to both high PDH activity and propylene selectivity. Notably, the Ir 0.5 Ga 2 /Al 2 O 3 with 0.5 wt % of Ir and 2.0 wt % of Ga exhibited a propylene selectivity of 98 % at a 19 % propane conversion at 550 °C and 86 % at a 35 % propane conversion at 600 °C. A stable PDH performance of 100 h was observed after a deactivation process at the initial reaction stage. The catalytic performance of the IrGa/Al 2 O 3 is comparable to that of Pt-based catalysts, endowing the Ir-based catalyst with great potential in dehydrogenation reactions.