Nanocrystalline Ferrihydrite-Based Catalysts for Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis: Part I. Reduction and Carburization Behavior.

Temperature-programmed reduction using H2 (H2-TPR) and CO (CO-TPR) was carried out to investigate the reduction and carburization behavior of nanocrystalline ferrihydrite-based Fe/Cu/K/SiO2 catalysts for use in Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS). Unlike pure ferrihydrite, the ferrihydrite-based catalysts did not pass through the intermediate decomposition step of ferrihydrite (Fe9O2(OH)23) into hematite (a-Fe2O3) as they were reduced into magnetite (Fe3O4). This is attributed to the enhanced thermal stability induced by SiO2. For the ferrihydrite-based catalysts, the reduction of ferrihydrite into magnetite occurred in two stages because the reduction promoter, Cu, is not homogeneously distributed on the catalyst surfaces. The Cu-rich sites are likely to be reduced in the first stage, and the Cu-lean sites may be reduced in the second stage. After the ferrihydrite is reduced to magnetite, the reduction process of magnetite was similar to that for conventional hematite-based FTS catalysts: 'magnetite --> metallic iron' and 'magnetite --> wustite (FeO) or fayalite (Fe2SiO4) --> metallic iron' in the H2 atmosphere; 'magnetite --> iron carbides' in the CO atmosphere.