Structure-property relationships that are rigorous and also broadly applicable within the field of bulk oxide catalysis are rare, in part owing to the inherent complexity of oxide surfaces that render it highly challenging to <i>exclusively</i> alter specific surface or bulk properties. We posit that at least part of this challenge can be overcome by studying, from a structure-catalytic property relationship standpoint, well-defined oxide crystals that do not undergo significant changes in morphology under reaction conditions. In this study we demonstrate such an approach for the oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane (ODHE) over bulk nickel oxide. We combine here three distinct elements: the use of well-defined nickel oxide crystals synthesized using a molten salt technique, high temperature thermal treatments that exclusively alter NiO non-stoichiometric oxygen density, and a kinetic analysis of individual steps within the ODHE reaction network, to elucidate the relationship between non-stoichiometric oxygen defects and catalytic performance. Crucially, characterization of non-stoichiometric oxygen content before and after ODHE reactions show that the thermal treatment protocols exploited in this study can be used to tune non-stoichiometric oxygen density <i>under</i> reaction conditions, thereby pointing to opportunities and avenues for relating the atomic-level structure of metal oxide surfaces to catalytic properties in a range of high-temperature partial oxidation reactions.

Tuning selectivity in the oxidative dehydrogenation of light alkanes by controlling non-stoichiometric oxygen density

Macromolecular Chemistry: The Second Century

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ACS Spring 2020 National Meeting & Expo

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.