Oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane and propane: How far from commercial implementation?

This review examines the recent literature on the oxidative dehydrogenation (ODH) of ethane and propane, which aims for the synthesis of the corresponding alkenes. The following aspects are discussed: (a) the main features affecting the catalytic properties of systems based on supported vanadium oxide and molybdenum oxide; (b) the characteristics of catalysts producing outstanding olefin yields; (c) advantages in selectivity gained by means of either special reactor configurations or non-conventional conduction of the reaction; (d) the contribution of homogeneous reactions to the formation of olefins during the oxidation of alkanes.