Cr/V/Sb mixed oxides, catalysts for the ammoxidation of propane to acrylonitrile: Part II. Effect of catalyst composition on catalytic performance Original Research Article

Rutile-type, Cr/V/Sb mixed oxides having different atomic ratio between components were studied as catalysts for propane and propylene ammoxidation to acrylonitrile. Catalysts were more active than Cr/Sb and V/Sb mixed oxides; this was attributed to (i) the higher specific surface area of Cr/Sb/O and Cr/V/Sb/O with respect to V/Sb/O, and (ii) the preferential formation of V4+ in Cr/V/Sb/O. The nature of the V species and the catalytic performance of Cr/V/Sb/O samples were functions of the (Cr+V)/Sb atomic ratio. When the latter was higher than ≈1, the prevailing species was V4+; the catalysts were very active but poorly selective to acrylonitrile (selectivity lower than 20%) because of the prevailing formation of carbon oxides and propylene. This was due to the absence of sites able to transform the unsaturated intermediate to acrylonitrile. When the (Cr+V)/Sb ratio was between ≈1 and ≈0.5, catalysts reached a selectivity to acrylonitrile between 20 and 30%, and to propylene lower than 10%. In these samples, the presence of intra-crystalline Sb gradients in the rutile lattice provided a Sb surface enrichment and the development of allylic ammoxidation sites, able to transform the unsaturated intermediate to acrylonitrile. When the (Cr+V)/Sb ratio was lower than ≈0.5, i.e. in systems having excess Sb, the prevailing species was V3+; the selectivity to acrylonitrile was higher than 30%, with low formation of carbon oxides and of propylene. In this case additional sites for allylic ammoxidation were provided by excess antimony oxide dispersed over the rutile surface.