Catalytic conversion of ethylbenzene to styrene by K-chromosilicate/Fe2O3 composites through CO2

Styrene is one of the most precious basic materials which its demands and applications are currently increasingly growing all over the world. Mostly styrene is produced by catalytic dehydrogenation of ethylbenzene at high temperatures in the presence of excess steam. This paper introduces novel composites of K-chromosilicate/Fe2O3 withhigh performance in oxidative dehydrogenation (ODH) of ethylbenzene to produce styrene with CO2. Regarding Kchromosilicate as catalyst support, various amounts of iron oxide nanoparticles (γ-Fe2O3) were introduced into porous support by solid-stated dispersion (SSD) in order to enhance catalytic activity. The prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with the energy dispersive analysis–EDX, and N2 physical adsorption analysis. According to the GC results of prepared nanocomposites in ODH reaction, the highest styrene yield, 46.95% with the selectivity of 92.40% belongs to 5F/KCS catalyst (potassium chromosilicate/5% Fe2O3). The relatively high performance of catalytic activity of the samples in ethylebenzene dehydrogenation process can be attributed to the synergistic effect of Cr2O3 and potassium K+ and iron Fe3+ ions in the structure of catalysts.