Carbon Fiber-supported Rh-Mn in Close Contact with Each Other and Its Catalytic Performance for Ethanol Synthesis from Syngas

Rh-Mn-based catalysts are promising for ethanol synthesis from syngas. In this work, a carbon fiber (CF)-supported Rh-Mn catalyst, with highly dispersed Rh and close contact Rh-Mn species, has been prepared by a new in situ polymerization route using citric acid and ethylene glycol interaction. The structure and physicochemical properties of both the calcined and reduced samples have been characterized by TPR, XRD, TEM, EDS, CO-TPD, H2 chemisorption, and XPS techniques and the catalytic performance for ethanol synthesis from syngas has been evaluated. The results show that the new method is beneficial in forming close contact Rh-Mn species than that obtained with the conventional impregnation method. This can enhance the dispersion and sintering resistance of Rh and effectively improve the activity of CO hydrogenation and the selectivity to ethanol in ethanol synthesis from syngas.