Mesostructured CeO2 as an Effective Catalyst for Styrene Synthesis by Oxidative Dehydrogenation of Ethylbenzene

A new type of mesostructured ceria material was synthesized via template-assisted precipitation method and tested for the oxidative dehydrogenation (ODH) of ethylbenzene to styrene by molecular oxygen. The effect of calcination temperature on the catalytic performances of the ceria catalysts has been investigated. Among the catalysts tested, the CeO2-450 sample derived by calcination at 450 A degrees C exhibited the highest ethylbenzene conversion (34%) and styrene selectivity (87%). Comparing the reaction rates for ODH of ethylbenzene (ca. 6.1 mmol ST g (cat) (-1) h(-1) at 450 A degrees C) with the highly active nanostructured carbon-based catalysts in the current literature confirmed the very high activity of these new materials. The superior catalytic performance of the CeO2-450 sample can be attributed to its high specific surface area and enhanced redox properties as revealed by H-2-TPR measurements.