Highly
ordered mesoporous Fe2O3–ZrO2 mixed bimetal oxides
(FeZr) without any additional chemical promoters were first applied
to produce the value-added hydrocarbons by CO hydrogenation through
Fischer–Tropsch synthesis (FTS) reaction of syngas. To enhance
a catalytic activity and structural stability, an irreducible ZrO2 as a structural promoter was incorporated in the ordered
mesoporous Fe2O3 structures with a different
Zr/Fe molar ratio from 0 to 1 prepared by using a hard template of
KIT-6. When an optimal amount of zirconia (Zr/Fe molar ratio = 0.25)
was incorporated in the ordered mesoporous Fe2O3 frameworks, the catalytic activity was significantly improved and
almost 10 times higher than the mesoporous monometallic Fe2O3. The highly ordered mesoporous structures were stably
preserved even under reductive FTS reaction conditions. The ordered
mesoporous FeZr catalysts showed a higher C5+ selectivity
even at a higher CO conversion above 80%. This improved catalytic
activity and stability on the optimized FeZr catalyst were mainly
attributed to the facile formation of active iron carbide species
such as the stable χ-Fe5C2 with insignificant
structural collapses through a formation of strongly interacted iron
nanoparticles with the ZrO2 structural promoter with a
suppressed inactive coke deposition in the highly ordered FeZr mesopores.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.