Performance of Ce-modified CuZnAl catalyst in the dehydrogenation of sec-butanol to methyl ethyl ketone

The CuZnAl catalyst prepared by co-precipitation was further modified with different contents of Ce through impregnation and used in the dehydrogenation of sec-butanol (SBA) to methyl ethyl ketone (MEK); the effect of Ce modification on the performance of CuZnAl catalyst was investigated. The results illustrate that the introduction of Ce in CuZnAl can promote the formation of CuAl₂O₄ spinel and thus improve the stability of Ce-modified CuZnAl catalyst; meanwhile, Ce is also conducive to reducing the grain size, enhancing the dispersion of CuO and ZnO, lowering the reduction temperature, and increasing the content of Cu²⁺ and consequently the content of active Cu⁰ species upon reduction. Over the Ce-modified 8%-Ce-CuZnAl catalyst, the conversion of SBA reaches 91.4% under 240 °C and a mass space velocity of 5 h⁻¹, with a selectivity of 96% to MEK; during the 100 h reaction test, the SBA conversion keeps at about 92%, with the selectivity to MEK at about 96%, demonstrating excellent stability of the Ce-modified CuZnAl catalyst.