Properties and deactivation of the active sites of an MoZSM-5 catalyst for methane dehydroaromatization: Electron microscopic and EPR studies

The MoZSM-5 (4.0 wt % Mo) catalyst has been characterized by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, EDXA, and EPR. Two types of molybdenum-containing particles are stabilized in the catalyst in the course of nonoxidative methane conversion at 750°C. These are 2-to 10-nm molybdenum carbide particles on the zeolite surface and clusters smaller than 1 nm in zeolite channels. According to EPR data, these clusters contain the oxidized molybdenum form Mo⁵⁺. The surface Mo₂C particles are deactivated at the early stages of the reaction because of graphite condensation on their surface. Methane is mainly activated on oxidized molybdenum clusters located in the open molecular pores of the zeolite. The catalyst is deactivated after the 420-min-long operation because of coke buildup on the zeolite surface and in the zeolite pores.