‘Ship-in-a-Bottle’ Synthesis of MoS2/MCM-41 Catalysts by Decomposition of Single Source Precursor in Mesoporous Channel

Abstract

MoS 2 /MCM-41 catalysts have been prepared by thermal decomposition of MCM-41 with cetyltrimethylammonium thiomolybdate, which was synthesized by reaction between ammonium thiomolybdate and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide left in the pore channel of MCM-41. The obtained catalysts exhibit type IV adsorption-desorption isotherms, indicating that MCM-41 mesoporous structure is retained during the synthesis process. With increasing loading of MoS 2 , the catalytic activity of MoS 2 /MCM-41 for HDS of DBT first increases, followed by a leveling off above 10 % MoS 2 loading, likely due to lack of accessibility to additional active sites. For the first time over MoS 2 catalysts, the DDS (i.e., hydrogenolysis) reaction pathway is favored with 100 % selectivity. This unique performance is associated with single layer MoS 2 sites stabilized within the pores of the MCM-41 support.