Hydrogen production from decalin over silica-supported platinum catalysts: a kinetic and thermodynamic study

Decalin dehydrogenation for efficient hydrogen production over platinum catalysts supported on different types of silica was studied. The catalytic properties of the prepared catalysts were tested under conditions of a flow installation. It was found that from a thermodynamic point of view, high temperatures will favor dehydrogenation, and low temperatures will favor the isomerization of cis-decalin to trans-decalin. It negatively affects the rate of decalin dehydrogenation; therefore, kinetic control is required. It was shown that the catalysts supported on mesoporous silica MCM-48 and SBA-15 showed a significantly higher catalytic activity during decalin dehydrogenation compared to catalysts supported on amorphous SiO2. The high surface area and small pore size of these supports positively affect Pt particles’ dispersion and result in the production of high-active catalysts for dehydrogenation of decalin to naphthalene. The maximum decalin conversion was observed over the 2% Pt/MCM-48 catalyst at a pressure of 0.5 MPa, a 325 °C temperature, and an LHSV of 20 h−1. This study provides a rationale for the proper support selection for efficient utilization of decalin as a LOHC.