Bimodal mesoporous γ-Al2O3: A promising support for CoMo-based catalyst in hydrodesulfurization of 4,6-DMDBT

Bimodal mesoporous gamma-Al2O3 (BMA) synthesized by a simple hydrothermal route was applied as support for CoMo-based catalyst. The materials were characterized and evaluated for hydrodesulfurization of 4,6-Dimethyldibenzothiophene (4,6-DMDBT) in a fixed-bed reactor. BMA displayed simultaneously high surface area, large porosity and particular hierarchically mesoporous structure after calcination at 550 degrees C. By taking advantage of these properties, CoMo-BMA catalyst bearing high active species dispersion, good reducibility and enhanced diffusibility was used in this work to compare with commercial gamma-Al2O3 supported catalyst. The obtained results showed that BMA had a good potential as support for hydrodesulfurization catalysts. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.