Chars produced from locally grown jack pine have been gasified at atmospheric pressure with temperatures up to 650°C in a flow reactor. The gases produced were CO, CO2, CH4 and H2 as well as H2 O. Above the char preparation temperature, 350°C, the yields of gaseous products increased with temperature until 550−600°C when the production of CH4, CO and H2 O decreased. Chars modified by the separate inclusion of 1% w/w sodium borate, sodium phosphate and nickel oxide produced changes in the product distribution; an effect which was also studied during the addition of steam to the gasification cycles. Gross calorific values of the chars and allied materials were determined in an adiabatic bomb calorimeter and residues were analysed for C, H and N contents.

Can. J. Chem. 56. 2530 ( 1978. The catalytic decomposition of 2-propanol has been studied in a flow system from 200 to 280LC on vanadium pentoxide and modified vanadium pentoxide catalysts. Results were obtained with separate melts of the oxide containing 9.09 niolz of each of the alkali metal sulfates and with individual preparations of the pentoxide containing 1.01, 2.00, and 4.98 mol% potassiun~ sulfate, respectively. In addition to expected dehydration and dehydrogenation reactions, propane was formed over the entire temperature range and became a dominant product at higher temperatures.Kinetic experiments showed that the dehydration and dehydrogenation reactions were zero order with respect to all components while the propane-forming reaction gave a rate order of 0.3 with respect to 2-propanol concentration. Elimination-type mechanisms have been proposed to explain the results and some evidence of a relationship between catalyst activities and surface acidity is presented. The observed kinetic compensation effect has been shown to compare well with previous work on 2-propanol decomposition on metal oxides. Des experiences de cinttique montrent que les reactions de deshydratation et de dtshydroghation sont d'ordre zero par rapport a tous les composants alors que l'ordre de la reaction de formation du propane est de 0.3 par rapport a la concentration de propanol-2. On a propose des mecanismes du type elimination pour expliquer les resultats et on presente quelques donntes relatives aux activites des catalyseurs et a I'acidite de la surface. On a montre que I'effet de compensation cinetique observee se compare bien avec le travail anttrieur sur la dCcomposition du propanol-2 sur des oxydes n~etalliques.[Traduit par le journal]

Can. J. Chem. 57.2464 ( 1979.Infrared spectra of the surfaces of vanadium pentoxide and vanadium pentoxide containing 9.09 m o l z caesium and potassium, as sulphates, have been determined after exposure to 2-propanol for various times. Interpretation of the spectra leads to the proposal that the principal source of catalyst activity may be associated with surface hydrogen and hydroxyl groups on V5+ and V4+ sites. The "stability" of the catalysts towards reduction by the alcohol was consistent with the activity series derived from kinetic measurements: V 2 0 5 (pure) < V 2 0 5 (Cs) < V,05 (K). The degree of sample reduction has also been assessed qualitatively by measurements of the ratio of surface area before to that after reaction and the same catalyst sequence was established. The trend in surface area ratios was similar to that shown by the surface "Tammann" temperatures of vanadium pentoxide and alkali metal sulphates which has been taken to imply that the ease and (or) extent with which the sulphates enter into inter-solid reactions with the oxide in the preparation stage may exert influence on the subsequent reducibility of the individual members of the catalyst series.

Can. J. Chem. 56.3078 ( 1978). The oxygen exchange reaction between 0, C"0, and the surfaces of vanadium pentoxide and promoted vanadium pentoxide catalysts has been studied in a circulation system using a quartz differential reactor. Isotopic compositions here analysed lvith an in-line mass spectrometer. Alkali metal sulphates, Li to Cs, were added to the pentoxide as individual promoters a t a concentration level of 9 n i o l z and the effect of variation of promoter concentration n a s examined with melts containing potassiurn sulphate at additional levels of 1, 2, and 5 n~o l z . The structures of the solids were studied by X-ray diffraction and by A T R and transniission infrared spectroscopy. The latter results have been used to explain the two activity series for the exchange rates: (i) V 2 0 , < Na i Li < K < R b < Cs (melts) and ( O n a etudie la structure des solides en utilisant la diffraction des rayons X, ainsi que la spectroxopie infrarouge par trans~nission et par RTA. Les vitesses d'echange ont conduit au classement dc l'activite des systemes selon les series suivantes: (i) V 2 0 s < N a < Li < K < R b < Cs et iii) V Z O~ < I m o l z < 2 n i o l z < 5 nmolz < 9 i n o l z (K). Les resultats des methodes enumerees ci-dessus ont permis de relier ces deus series aux effets conjugues de l'abondance et de la force relatives des liens vanadium oxygene se trouvant sur la surface des catalyseurs.[Traduit par le journal]