Dehydrogenation of Cycloalkanes Catalyzed by Metals in Supported Molten Salts

摘要

The studies were designed to evaluate the potential advantages associated with the use of transition metal microcrystallites dispersed in molten salts in the dehydrogenation of cyclic hydrocarbons which are viewed as potential endothermic fuel candidates. Although both molten salt pools and Supported Molten Salt Catalysts (SMSC) were studied, only SMSC gave results which show any developmental promise for use in the endothermic fuels initiative presently underway at AFWAL. All of the SMSC studies were performed in packed tube reactors and were designed to permit comparison with data for conventional heterogeneous catalysts used under the same operational conditions. The majority of the studies involved the dehydrogenation of methylcyclohexane (MCH) to toluene. This reaction system was selected because of the existing data base generated by the extensive studies at Shell Development using conventional heterogeneous platinum catalysts usually on alumina supports. Two modifications were made to the original statement of work. The first involved a one man-month study of platinum, in both conventional and SMSC mode, as an heterogeneous catalyst for the coupled dehydrogenation - Retro-diels-Alder reaction of JP-10 (exo-octahydro-4,7-methano-1H-indene). The second involved as its primary endeavor the use of alkali metal hydroxide eutectics in SMSC for catalytic dehydrogenation of methylcyclohexane to toluene. (aw)