Poly aromatic hydrocarbon (naphthalene) conversion into value added chemical (tetralin): Activity and stability of MoP/AC catalyst

The numerous environmental challenges attributed to polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) recently accounted to search for better valorization options especially, naphthalene upgrading into tetralin is a promising catalytic process which is important for the petrochemical industry due to the widespread applicability and global demand. A key challenge in this process is to design highly efficient, low temperature active, selective, stable, yet cost-effective catalyst. Herein, we employed impregnation and temperature-programmed reduction (TPR) method and developed an activated carbon (AC) supported molybdenum phosphide (MoP) catalyst. The samples were successfully characterized using XRD, XPX, SEM, TEM, EPMA, TGA/DTA, N₂ adsorption, NH₃-TPD and pyridine FTIR. The catalysts were evaluated for naphthalene conversion under various operational conditions; 240-360 °C, 4.0 MPa, and 3.0-20/h LHSV. Excellent naphthalene conversion of 82% and 99% selectivity to tetralin was achieved with the 10 wt.% MoP/AC catalyst. This promising low temperature performance could be attributed to the moderate acidity of the catalyst inhibiting hydrocracking; and the large surface area of AC that increased MoP dispersion and associated AC-MoP interactions.