Exploration of regeneration process in Pt-Ga catalysts supported on alumina for propane dehydrogenation

Propane dehydrogenation (PDH) is one of the main industrial processes to produce propene. Notably, catalysts for PDH reaction require constant regeneration because of fast catalyst deactivation due to coking and sintering. In that context, we have found that Pt-Ga bimetallic systems supported on Si-doped alumina displays enhanced activity and stability for PDH compared to monometallic Pt systems supported on alumina. In order to understand the difference between "good” and “bad” catalysts depending on the surface dopants and additives, we plan to carry out in-situ and operando XAS studies during PDH and subsequent regeneration tests using a series of Pt-Ga systems with tailored surface sites as model catalysts prepared via surface organometallic chemistry (SOMC). Repeating the cycles of PDH and regeneration will allow us to identify the roles of dopants and additives on catalyst productivity and stability by amplifying the spectra differences.