Non-oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane to ethylene over chromium catalysts prepared from layered double hydroxide precursors

Non-oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane into ethylene at 700 °C over reductively pretreated Cr–Mg–Al and Cr–Mg mixed oxide catalysts has been studied. The catalysts were prepared from layered double hydroxide (LDH) precursors that contained various species of chromium (i.e., cationic Cr(III), complex of Cr(III) with an anionic chelating agent, and chromate anion). Synthesized materials were characterized with powder X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy techniques. It was shown that the surface area of the LDH-derived mixed oxides, their catalytic performance, coking ability, and susceptibility to sintering were highly dependent on the method used for introducing chromium into the LDH precursors of the catalysts.