Impact of Reaction Conditions on Product Distribution in Oxidative Dehydrogenation of Ethane over MoVNbTeO x Catalysts.
- 1TUM School of Engineering and Design, Department of Energy and Process Engineering, Institute of Plant and Process Technology, Technical University of Munich, Garching 85748, Germany.
- 2Linde GmbH, Linde Engineering, Pullach 82049, Germany.
- 3Clariant Produkte (Deutschland) GmbH, Heufeld 83052, Germany.
Abstract
Oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane over MoVNbTeO x catalysts offers a less carbon-intensive alternative to steam cracking. This work systematically examines the effects of catalyst bed inert dilution, reactor inlet pressure, molar steam-to-ethane feed ratio, coolant temperature, and weight hourly space velocity on ethane conversion and product distribution under both kinetically oriented, pseudo-isothermal conditions and process-relevant, non-isothermal conditions. Comparative tests confirm that trends observed under pseudo-isothermal conditions persist under process-relevant operating conditions, validating their industrial significance. Increasing the reactor inlet pressure promotes acetic acid formation, whereas a higher weight hourly space velocity favors ethylene selectivity by limiting secondary oxidation. An optimal steam-to-ethane ratio prevents catalyst deactivation while maintaining a high catalytic activity. The ethylene yield reaches a maximum at intermediate steam-to-ethane ratios, whereas the acetic acid yield increases continuously throughout the investigated range. Apparent activation energies determined from quasi-isothermal experiments further indicate a stronger temperature dependence of ethylene formation than that of acetic acid formation. Notably, the steam partial pressure in the wet product gas is the key parameter determining the molar product ratio of ethylene to that of acetic acid. It modulates the degree of coverage of the catalyst surface with water and thus shifts the balance between active sites for ethylene or acetic acid production, enabling a robust basis for the process control strategies. Additional experiments comparing ethane and ethylene oxidation highlight the role of ethylene in the formation of trace products methane and acetylene, detected at ethane conversions above 20%. These findings provide a mechanistic basis for tuning catalytic activity and product distribution through targeted adjustment of key process variables under industrially relevant conditions.
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BibTeX
@article{weis2026impact,
title = {{Impact of Reaction Conditions on Product Distribution in Oxidative Dehydrogenation of Ethane over MoVNbTeO x Catalysts.}},
author = {Yannick Weis and Martin Schubert and Andreas Meiswinkel and Sebastian Böcklein and Klaus Wanninger and Gerhard Mestl and Sebastian Rehfeldt and Harald Klein},
journal = {Industrial \& engineering chemistry research},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1021/acs.iecr.6c02345},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42899012},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Impact of Reaction Conditions on Product Distribution in Oxidative Dehydrogenation of Ethane over MoVNbTeO x Catalysts.
AU - Yannick Weis
AU - Martin Schubert
AU - Andreas Meiswinkel
AU - Sebastian Böcklein
AU - Klaus Wanninger
AU - Gerhard Mestl
AU - Sebastian Rehfeldt
AU - Harald Klein
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Industrial & engineering chemistry research
DO - 10.1021/acs.iecr.6c02345
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42899012
AB - Oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane over MoVNbTeO x catalysts offers a less carbon-intensive alternative to steam cracking. This work systematically examines the effects of catalyst bed inert dilution, reactor inlet pressure, molar steam-to-ethane feed ratio, coolant temperature, and weight hourly space velocity on ethane conversion and product distribution under both kinetically oriented, pseudo-isothermal conditions and process-relevant, non-isothermal conditions. Comparative tests confirm that trends observed under pseudo-isothermal conditions persist under process-relevant operating conditions, validating their industrial significance. Increasing the reactor inlet pressure promotes acetic acid formation, whereas a higher weight hourly space velocity favors ethylene selectivity by limiting secondary oxidation. An optimal steam-to-ethane ratio prevents catalyst deactivation while maintaining a high catalytic activity. The ethylene yield reaches a maximum at intermediate steam-to-ethane ratios, whereas the acetic acid yield increases continuously throughout the investigated range. Apparent activation energies determined from quasi-isothermal experiments further indicate a stronger temperature dependence of ethylene formation than that of acetic acid formation. Notably, the steam partial pressure in the wet product gas is the key parameter determining the molar product ratio of ethylene to that of acetic acid. It modulates the degree of coverage of the catalyst surface with water and thus shifts the balance between active sites for ethylene or acetic acid production, enabling a robust basis for the process control strategies. Additional experiments comparing ethane and ethylene oxidation highlight the role of ethylene in the formation of trace products methane and acetylene, detected at ethane conversions above 20%. These findings provide a mechanistic basis for tuning catalytic activity and product distribution through targeted adjustment of key process variables under industrially relevant conditions.
SN - 0888-5885
ER -