Preparation of cordierite monolithic catalyst for α-methylstyrene hydrogenation in a rotating packed bed reactor

A rotating packed bed (RPB) reactor with excellent mass transfer performance can be applied for catalytic reactions. However, the structure of catalyst particles randomly inside the rotor of the RPB reactor was easily deformed under the centrifugal field. In this work, a cordierite (COR) monolithic catalyst with high mechanical strength was prepared, aiming to be used in the RPB reactor for hydrogenation. The acid pretreatment and Al 2 O 3 coating were employed to increase the specific surface area of COR substrate. Active component palladium (Pd) was deposited on Al 2 O 3 /COR. Hydrogenation of α-methylstyrene (AMS) was selected as a model reaction for the RPB reactor with the above Pd/Al 2 O 3 /COR. Experimental results show that the space time yield (STY) in the RPB reactor was effectually enhanced 9.2 times higher than that in the fixed bed reactor at the operation conditions of 30 °C and 0.2 MPa, which shows potential prospects of the RPB reactor with Pd/Al 2 O 3 /COR monolithic catalyst for the process intensification of catalytic reaction.