Effect of alkaline treatment on pore structure and acidity of HZSM-5 in the synthesis of ethyl mercaptan

•Alkaline treatment leads to the development of considerable mesoporosity.•The selectivity for ethyl mercaptan is markedly improved upon alkaline treatment.•Catalyst lifetimes are prolonged upon alkaline treatment.•The mesopores facilitate mass transfer and change the distribution of acid sites.

A series of alkaline-treated HZSM-5 catalysts were prepared and applied to the synthesis of ethyl mercaptan. The physicochemical properties were characterized by a combination of ICP-OES, N2 adsorption, XRD, NH3-TPD, FT-IR spectra of pyridine and 2,4,6-trimethylpyridine.The obtained results demonstrated that alkaline treatment led to the development of considerable mesoporosity without significant destruction of the intrinsic zeolite properties. The mesopores facilitated mass transfer and changed the distribution of acid sites, thus markedly improving catalytic stability and the selectivity for ethyl mercaptan.

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