Synthesis and catalytic activity of porous Fe–Pd alloys in the decomposition of C 2 –C 4 hydrocarbons

A method for the synthesis of microdispersed Fe–Pd (0–10 atom% Pd) alloys with a porous morphology has been proposed. The synthesis is based on reductive thermolysis of specially prepared single-source precursors. According to XRD data, the phase composition of the obtained alloys is represented by solid solutions based on a body-centered crystal lattice (bcc, Im- 3 m ) of iron. Samples of Fe–Pd alloys have a branched 3D microstructure formed by grains 0.5–1 µm in size interconnected by bridges. The effect of palladium concentration on the catalytic performance of the synthesized Fe–Pd alloys in the decomposition of saturated C 2 –C 4 hydrocarbons to form carbon nanofibers (CNF) was explored. It was shown that Fe–Pd alloys exhibit a 10–40 times higher catalytic activity compared to pure iron. The carbon yield increases with increasing the palladium content. The produced nanomaterial, represented by carbon nanostructured fibers (CNFs) of 0.1–0.5 µm in diameter, has a low bulk density (40–60 g/L) and a high specific surface area (150–300 m 2 /g). The resulting metal–carbon material is prospective as a catalytic support, sorbent, or modifying additive in composite materials.