A series of Cu/SiO2 catalysts with various alkali metal oxide additives was investigated to
elucidate the effects of additives on the catalytic properties of copper catalysts in the
dehydrogenation of ethanol. The catalysts were prepared by the impregnation method and were
characterized by X-ray diffraction, temperature-programmed reduction, temperature-programmed desorption of CO2, and H2−N2O titration. The dehydrogenation reaction was carried
out in a continuous-flow reactor at 300 °C under atmospheric pressure. The catalytic properties
of the copper catalysts were strongly affected by the additives. The addition of alkali metal oxide
increased the concentration of weak basic sites of the catalyst. The increase in turnover
frequencies of the alkali-metal-oxide-modified catalysts was mainly due to the promotional effects
of weak basic sites on Cu catalysts. KCu/SiO2 catalyst was very stable in the reaction process.
The stabilities of NaCu/SiO2 and RbCu/SiO2 catalysts were similar to that of the unmodified
catalyst. The decay of the catalysts during reaction was caused by sintering. The kinetics for
deactivation can be described by a concentration-independent second-order expression.
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