The effect of co-feeding ethanol on a methanol to propylene (MTP) reaction over a commercial MTP catalyst

In this work, co-feeding ethanol with methanol was adopted to prolong the lifetime of a catalyst in a methanol to propylene (MTP) reaction. The effect of an ethanol additive on the MTP reaction was further investigated over an MTP catalyst, pure catalysts of ZSM-5 and gamma-Al2O3, and a mixed catalyst of ZSM-5 and gamma-Al2O3, by using methanol and ethanol alone. The catalytic performance showed that with an increasing addition of ethanol, the lifetime of the commercial MTP catalyst was greatly improved, and the selectivity for ethylene correspondingly increased. The catalytic performances of methanol and ethanol on different catalysts showed that the reactivity of methanol and ethanol were in the following order: ethanol on ZSM-5 > ethanol on gamma-Al2O3 > methanol on ZSM-5 > methanol on gamma-Al2O3. Moreover, coke deposition on moderately strong and strong acid sites and pore blockage were responsible for catalyst deactivation.