Direct synthesis of ethanol from dimethyl ether and syngas over combined H-Mordenite and Cu/ZnO catalysts.
Ethanol was directly synthesized from dimethyl ether (DME) and syngas with the combined H-Mordenite and Cu/ZnO catalysts that were separately loaded in a dual-catalyst bed reactor. Methyl acetate (MA) was formed by DME carbonylation over the H-Mordenite catalyst. Thereafter, ethanol and methanol were produced by MA hydrogenation over the Cu/ZnO catalyst. With the reactant gas containing 1.0% DME, the optimized temperature for the reaction was at 493 K to reach 100% conversion. In the products, the yield of methanol and ethanol could reach 46.3% and 42.2%, respectively, with a small amount of MA, ethyl acetate, and CO(2). This process is environmentally friendly as the main byproduct methanol can be recycled to DME by a dehydration reaction. In contrast, for the physically mixed catalysts, the low conversion of DME and high selectivity of methanol were observed.
Li
Xingang
X
Tianjin Key Laboratory of Applied Catalysis Science and Technology, School of Chemical Engineering and Technology Institution, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, PR China. xingang_li@tju.edu.cn
San
Xiaoguang
X
Zhang
Yi
Y
Ichii
Takashi
T
Meng
Ming
M
Tan
Yisheng
Y
Tsubaki
Noritatsu
N
D000085:Acetates / Q000737:chemistry; D000538:Aluminum Silicates / Q000737:chemistry; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000737:chemistry; D002248:Carbon Monoxide / Q000737:chemistry*; D002384:Catalysis; D003300:Copper / Q000737:chemistry*; D000431:Ethanol / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry; D005740:Gases / Q000737:chemistry*; D006859:Hydrogen / Q000737:chemistry; D000432:Methanol / Q000737:chemistry; D008738:Methyl Ethers / Q000737:chemistry*; D013696:Temperature; D015034:Zinc Oxide / Q000737:chemistry*
D000085:Acetates; D000538:Aluminum Silicates; D005740:Gases; D008738:Methyl Ethers; C048397:mordenite; D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D000431:Ethanol; C007650:ethyl acetate; D003300:Copper; D002248:Carbon Monoxide; D006859:Hydrogen; C033413:dimethyl ether; D015034:Zinc Oxide; C046923:methyl acetate; D000432:Methanol