Effect of methanol addition on higher alcohol synthesis over modified molybdenum sulfide catalysts

• The effect of methanol cofeeding was tested on K–MoS2 and K–Ni–MoS2 catalysts.
• Methane production was greatly increased upon methanol addition.
• The effect on ethanol and higher alcohol yield was mostly negative.
• The bipromoted catalyst performed better than the monopromoted one.

One of the main problems in higher alcohol synthesis is the poor product distribution. Cofeeding of methanol, together with the synthesis gas, has been suggested in order to increase the yield of ethanol and higher alcohols. In this work, the effect of methanol addition on K–MoS2 and K–Ni–MoS2 catalysts was studied at 71 bar, 340 °C and GHSV = 6000 N mL/h · gcatalyst. Under these conditions methanol recycle is not a viable option for boosting higher alcohol production. The main result was an increase in methane yield, while the effect in higher alcohols was negative or not significant.

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