Molecular Design of Solid Acid Catalysts for Upgrading Shale Gas Ethylene to Butenes

在化学系化学催化项目的支持下，利哈伊大学的Wachs教授正在研究固体酸催化剂的反应性，用于从美国丰富而廉价的页岩气中生产化学品和燃料。所研究的固体酸催化剂是通过将乙烯转化为化学品和燃料如汽油、柴油和喷气燃料来加速用于升级源自页岩气的乙烯的化学反应的材料。通过增加对这些催化剂的理解并提高其效率和选择性，Wachs教授和他的研究小组正在为开发更高效和选择性的工艺做出贡献，这些工艺可以避免传统液体酸催化剂带来的分离挑战和不期望的排放。这些活动有助于推进固体酸催化剂的使用，以从丰富的页岩气中生产更便宜的化学品和燃料，并减少原油的进口及其对环境的不良排放。这些活动产生的成果正在利哈伊谷达芬奇科学中心的年度夏季研讨会上展示，所有年龄段的游客都可以接触到为页岩气开发的新技术，这些技术可以创造有价值的化学品和燃料。尽管有许多报道的乙烯偶联固体酸催化剂的研究，仍然缺乏一个基本的理解，这是阻止改进系统的合理设计。Wachs教授和他的研究团队正在努力发展对硫酸镍氧化锆催化剂行为的深入了解，并研究这些材料的性能是否可以通过调整催化剂合成程序来调节。乙烯如何与这些固体酸催化剂相互作用以进行偶联反应的基本细节在乙烯二聚反应期间用现代光谱方法直接监测。这些研究提供了洞察力，并指导改进的固体酸催化剂的合理设计，用于将页岩气衍生的乙烯升级为化学品和燃料。参与这些活动的研究生和本科生也接受了出色的培训，接触了尖端的研究仪器，并介绍了紧迫的技术问题。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

With the support of the Chemical Catalysis Program in the Division of Chemistry, Professor Wachs of Lehigh University is studying the reactivity of solid acid catalysts for the production of chemicals and fuels from the abundant and inexpensive shale gas in America. The investigated solid acid catalysts are materials that accelerate chemical reactions for upgrading ethylene derived from shale gas by converting ethylene to chemicals and fuels such as gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel. By increasing understanding and improving the efficiency and selectivity of these catalysts, Professor Wachs and his research group are contributing to the development of more efficient and selective processes that avoid the separation challenges and undesirable emissions associated with traditional liquid acid catalysts. These activities are helping to advance the use of solid acid catalysts toward the production of less expensive chemicals and fuels from abundant shale gas and decrease imports of crude oil with its environmentally undesirable emissions. The results generated from these activities are being showcased in annual summer workshops at the Lehigh Valley Da Vinci Science Center where visitors of all ages are being exposed to the new technologies being developed for shale gas that create valuable chemicals and fuels. In spite of numerous reported studies of ethylene coupling by solid acid catalysts, a fundamental understanding is still lacking that is preventing the rational design of improved systems. Professor Wachs and his research team are working toward the development of an advanced understanding of the behavior of nickel sulfated zirconia catalysts and investigating whether the performance of these materials is tunable by adjusting the catalyst synthesis procedure. Fundamental details of how ethylene is interacting with these solid acid catalysts to undergo the coupling reaction are being directly monitored with modern spectroscopic methods during the ethylene dimerization reaction. These studies are providing insight and guiding the rational design of improved solid acid catalysts for upgrading shale gas-derived ethylene to chemicals and fuels. The diverse group of graduate and undergraduate students involved in these activities are also receiving excellent training, exposure to cutting edge research instrumentation and introduction to pressing technological problems.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.