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An Activated TiC–SiC Composite for Natural Gas Upgrading via Catalytic Oxyhalogenation
Author(s) -
Zichittella Guido,
Puértolas Begoña,
Siol Sebastian,
Paunović Vladimir,
Mitchell Sharon,
PérezRamírez Javier
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
chemcatchem
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.497
H-Index - 106
eISSN - 1867-3899
pISSN - 1867-3880
DOI - 10.1002/cctc.201701632
Subject(s) - catalysis , selectivity , methane , materials science , alkane , composite number , chemical engineering , yield (engineering) , halide , heterogeneous catalysis , ethylene , chemistry , inorganic chemistry , organic chemistry , composite material , engineering
Alkane oxyhalogenation has emerged as an attractive catalytic route for selective natural gas functionalization to important commodity chemicals, such as methyl halides or olefins. However, few systems have been shown to be active and selective in these reactions. Here, we identify a novel and highly efficient TiC–SiC composite for methane and ethane oxyhalogenation. Detailed characterization elucidates the kinetics and mechanism of the selective activation under reaction conditions to yield TiO 2 –TiC–SiC. This catalyst outperforms bulk TiO 2 , one of the best reported catalysts, reaching up to 85 % selectivity and up to 3 times higher titanium‐specific space‐time‐yield of methyl halides or ethylene. This is attributed to the fact that the active TiO 2 phase generated in situ is embedded in the thermally conductive SiC matrix, facilitating heat dissipation thus improving selectivity control.