Ordered mesoporous Ga2O3 and Ga2O3–Al2O3 prepared by nanocasting as effective catalysts for propane dehydrogenation in the presence of CO2

Thermally stable mesoporous gallium and gallium–aluminum (atomic ratio of Ga/Al = 4/1 and 1/4) oxides with controlled textural and structural properties were prepared by means of the nanocasting approach. All materials have uniform micron-sized particles, with a quite narrow pore-size distribution centered in the range of 6.2–6.5 nm and specific surface areas as high as 231–322 m2·g− 1. Pure mesoporous gallium and gallium–aluminum (Ga/Al = 4:1) oxides exhibit a promising catalytic performance in the dehydrogenation of propane to propene in the presence of CO2 (DHP-CO2). Over the most active materials, during 4 h on stream at 823 K, propene was produced with the yield of 10–18% and high selectivity of 91–95%. Moreover, pure mesoporous gallium oxide exerted a higher resistance on deactivation during the DHP-CO2 process in comparison with gallium oxide prepared without a hard template.

Graphical abstractFigure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slideHighlights► Ordered mesoporous Ga and Ga–Al oxides are prepared by nanocasting using CMK-3 as hard template. ► All prepared mesoporous materials exhibit high thermal stability. ► Ga-rich catalysts are active and selective in dehydrogenation of propane with CO2. ► Propene yield increases with the rise of Ga/Al ratio in the catalyst.