(Ga, Al)-H-MFI Catalysts with Highly Dispersed Ga Sites and Proximal Protonic Sites Enable Methane–Propane Coaromatization

Methane–propane coaromatization (MPCA) upgrades two abundant and inexpensive light alkanes into value-added aromatic products. While Ga-loaded MFI zeolites represent by far the most promising catalysts for MPCA reaction, they often contain a sizable portion of Ga species at the external surface of zeolites, which are remote from the Brønsted acid sites (BAS) within MFI pores and thus inefficient for MPCA. Here, we show that Ga can be introduced into MFI pores at fairly high loadings via a simple cocrystallization approach, yielding catalysts possessing well-dispersed Ga sites predominantly residing inside the pores and framework. Adjacency between Ga and BAS within the constraints of MFI channels makes these (Ga, Al)-H-MFI catalysts more active toward methane and propane activation and more selective toward aromatics compared to the Ga/MFI counterparts prepared by impregnation that inevitably leaves a large fraction of Ga at the external surface (i.e., without confinement and few adjacent BAS). Further, the effects of the Si/Al ratio on MPCA performance have been investigated for (Ga, Al)-H-MFI catalysts. Due to the multifold roles of BAS in the overall reaction sequence, an increased BAS concentration generally results in higher propane conversion and productivity of aromatics together with lower net methane conversion and severer coking.