Preparation of ZSM-5 for DME Synthesis
Department
Chemical and Biochemical Engineering
Major
Chemical Engineering
Research Advisor
Liang, Xinhua
Advisor's Department
Chemical and Biochemical Engineering
Funding Source
Opportunities for Undergraduate Research Experiences
Abstract
The most commonly used catalyst for the synthesis of DME through methanol dehydration is γ-Al2O3, due to its low cost, and high selectivity towards DME. However, γ-Al2O3 tends to adsorb water produced during the reaction, which makes it an unreliable catalyst because of deactivation. On the other hand, zeolite, such as ZSM-5, has huge catalytic potential as dehydration components in DME synthesis, because of its high resistance toward water adsorption, tunable acidity, and high activity. In this study, we explored the effect of pressing and grinding on the catalytic performance of DME catalyst granules. Besides, through both literature survey and experiment, influences of temperature, acidity & structure of zeolite, and surface modification on ZSM-5 catalytic performance, were evaluated by selectivity and yield of DME as well as methanol conversion. At last, the possible changes of zeolite crystal structure during the synthesis process and their influences on catalytic activity were investigated through literature research.
Biography
Zihao Meng is a senior majoring in Chemical Engineering in the department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering. He has strong interests in studying catalysts and nanomaterial. As a participant of OURE program, he has been working in Dr. Liang’s lab since Fall 2018. He is also a member of American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), Tau Beta Pi and a design team at Missouri S&T.
Research Category
Engineering
Presentation Type
Poster Presentation
Document Type
Poster
Location
Upper Atrium
Presentation Date
16 Apr 2019, 9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Preparation of ZSM-5 for DME Synthesis
Upper Atrium
The most commonly used catalyst for the synthesis of DME through methanol dehydration is γ-Al2O3, due to its low cost, and high selectivity towards DME. However, γ-Al2O3 tends to adsorb water produced during the reaction, which makes it an unreliable catalyst because of deactivation. On the other hand, zeolite, such as ZSM-5, has huge catalytic potential as dehydration components in DME synthesis, because of its high resistance toward water adsorption, tunable acidity, and high activity. In this study, we explored the effect of pressing and grinding on the catalytic performance of DME catalyst granules. Besides, through both literature survey and experiment, influences of temperature, acidity & structure of zeolite, and surface modification on ZSM-5 catalytic performance, were evaluated by selectivity and yield of DME as well as methanol conversion. At last, the possible changes of zeolite crystal structure during the synthesis process and their influences on catalytic activity were investigated through literature research.
