Conversion of ethanol into hydrocarbon components of fuels in the presence of Pd-Zn-containing catalysts

The features of ethanol conversion into hydrocarbons C4-C12 in the presence of the novel catalyst Pd-Zn/γ-alumina and pilot zeolite system Pd-Zn/MFI/γ-alumina were studied (MFI is high-siliceous zeolite with ZSM-5 type structure). The structure of active sites changes noticeably in the course of preliminary activation and catalytic reaction. High selectivity and stability of the zeolite-containing Pd-Zn catalyst in alcohol conversion into hydrocarbon components of fuels is related to the stable composition of the alloy that forms clusters PdZn. At the same time, the alumina-based catalyst loses stability due to zinc diffusion from the alloy into γ-Al2O3 to form the spinel structure.