Thin-sheet Ag/Ni-fiber catalyst for gas-phase selective oxidation of benzyl alcohol with molecular oxygen

A non-woven microfibrous thin-sheet structure with 5 vol% 8 μm diameter nickel fibers was built up using wet-lay papermaking and sintering process. Silver was then placed onto the sinter-locked Ni-fiber by the incipient wetness impregnation with AgNO3 aqueous solution. As-made Ag/Ni-fiber catalysts exhibited much higher activity/selectivity for the gas-phase selective oxidation of benzyl alcohol to benzaldehyde, and provided significant increase in the steady-state volumetric reaction rate with dramatic saving of Ag, in comparison with the electrolytic silver and Ag/α-Al2O3 catalysts. Conversion of 84% was achievable with benzaldehyde selectivity of 94% at 380 °C using a high WHSV of 30 h−1.