Co-modified Fe2O3–ZrO2 for catalyzing propane and CO2 reaction to propylene

Abstract

High transformation of the propane and CO₂ reaction to propylene (PDH–CO₂) is impelled by the reverse water–gas shift entails strong catalysts toward the reverse water–gas shift (RWGS) as well as propane dehydrogenation (PDH). A series of Co-modified Fe₂O₃–ZrO₂ with proportions of 3–9 wt% (nCoFe–ZrO₂) were synthesized using an oxalate coprecipitation method and their catalytic activity for PDH–CO₂ at 550 °C was studied. 7CoFe–ZrO₂ displayed the highest conversion to both CO₂ and propane (37.6% and 47.4%) and propylene yield (38.1%) at a lower apparent activation energy. The interaction between Co species and Fe species and its effects on the active Fe₃O₄ and the adsorption of propane/CO₂ were revealed using XRD, UV-Vis DRS, SEM/TEM, XPS, NH₃/CO₂/C₃H₈-TPD, and H₂-TPR analysis. With Co-modification, the reduction of Fe₂O₃ to Fe₃O₄ was enhanced, which accelerated RWGS in addition to PDH. The key role of the *OOCH intermediate for promoting PDH and RWGS during PDH–CO₂ reaction was traced through in situ DRIFTS characterization.