Hydrogenation of dibenzyltoluene and the catalytic performance of Pt/Al2O3 with various Pt loadings for hydrogen production from perhydro-dibenzyltoluene

Abstract

The characteristics of the hydrogenation of dibenzyltoluene and dehydrogenation of perhydro-dibenzyltoluene (H18-DBT) are investigated. The hydrogenation experiments are conducted using Raney-Ni. It is found that 170 degrees C and 7 MPa is the optimal reaction condition at which the hydrogen capacity of 6.2 wt% is achieved in 30 hours. The optimal temperature for the dehydrogenation of H18-DBT is found to be 290 degrees C. Moreover, the dehydrogenation of H18-DBT is carried out over Pt/Al2O3 catalysts with different Pt metal loadings (1% similar to 5%). The results elucidate that 5% Pt/Al2O3 is the most active catalyst yielding 90.2% of the stored hydrogen in 7 hours. The catalytic activity of the catalysts is in the order 5% > 4% > 3% > 2% > 1% Pt/Al2O3. The increment in catalyst dosage increases the reaction rate and hydrogen yield%. Lastly, the cyclic experiments are conducted and DBT is found to be quite stable in all three cycles.