Supported Ni Catalysts: Simple Vapor Deposition Preparation Method and Improved Catalytic Performance for Oxidative Dehydrogenation of Ethane

Developing new methods of catalyst preparation is one of the most important tasks in the field of catalysis. A simple one-tube vapor deposition (VD) is provided in this paper for preparing the supported Ni catalyst. Ni­(acac)2 was used as the Ni precursor. This preparation method was successfully applied to three types of catalytic supports, that is, Al2O3 and zeolites 5A and Hβ. Varying Ni contents of less than 8 wt % can be obtained by employing different conditions. The Ni content, depending on different deposition conditions, was preliminarily explored. The catalytic performance for oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane (ODHE) was tested for the prepared Ni catalysts by the VD method. Several cases of catalytic tests showed that for the same Ni content, the VD-prepared Ni catalyst presented better performance for ODHE than the one prepared by a traditional impregnation method. Besides the improvement in catalytic performance, several advantages of our VD preparation method for catalysis are discussed.