Ultrafine PtGa Clusters Confined in Porous ZrOx/SiO2 Nanofibers for Enhanced Propane Dehydrogenation

Ultrafine Pt clusters exhibit superior activity for propane dehydrogenation compared to larger Pt nanoparticles; however, they are prone to sintering at high operating temperatures, leading to a decline in both activity and selectivity. In this work, porous ZrOx/SiO2 nanofibers featuring highly dispersed ZrOx nanodomains within a SiO2 matrix were successfully fabricated via a high-throughput blow-spinning process. The abundant and thermal-stable 1.6 nm micropores significantly stabilize 1.5 nm PtGa clusters against sintering at temperatures over 800 °C, due to the pore confinement. Moreover, the electron transfer from Ga to Pt is significantly enhanced in close proximity to ZrOx, contributing to metallic Pt with exceptional activity toward C–H bond activation. Thereby, the sinter-resistant PtGa/ZrOx/SiO2 nanofibers maintained 98.8% propylene selectivity and 43.2% propane conversion rate over 100 h of reaction, with a deactivation rate constant down to 0.0045 h–1. This work explores a sinter-resistant catalytic system based on oxide nanofibers and elaborates a new logic for the design of high-performance propane dehydrogenation catalysts with long-term stability.