A CuZn-BTC derived stable Cu/ZnO@SiO2 catalyst for ethanol dehydrogenation

Cu-based catalysts play pivotal role in many industrial processes, however, its application under high temperature is restricted due to the low Tammann temperature of Cu. Improving the stability and activity of Cu-based catalysts at high temperature is a challenge. In this work, a stable Cu/ZnO@SiO2 catalyst was prepared, in which silicon was introduced into CuZn-BTC precursor via a steam-assisted hydrolysis method before calcination and reduction. Characterizations found that Cu/ZnO@SiO2 catalyst prepared via above strategy possesses increased surface area, more exposed active sites and excellent stability for ethanol dehydrogenation than Cu/ZnO (prepared from CuZn-BTC without SiO2). It was confirmed that the space-time yield of acetaldehyde reached 9.0 g-acetaldehyde/g-cat/h, and Cu/ZnO@SiO2 could maintain its activity within 200 h at 350 °C due to the ZnO decorated Cu particles (Cu/ZnO) were encapsulated in the octahedral shaped SiO2 hollow.