Monometallic and bimetallic phosphide catalysts for hydrodesulfurization

COLL 210

Autumn W. Burns and Mark E. Bussell. Department of Chemistry, MS-9150, Western Washington University, 516 High Street, Bellingham, WA 98225
In order to meet upcoming regulations for low sulfur fuels, our laboratory is investigating a range of new materials to determine their potential as hydrodesulfurization (HDS) catalysts. Cobalt is currently used as a promoter for Mo-based sulfide catalysts while phosphorous is often used as an additive. Consequently, we have prepared and characterized a number of oxide-supported monometallic (Co2P, CoP, CoP2) and bimetallic (CoMoP, CoMoP2, CoNiP) phosphide phases. The phosphide catalysts have been characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and O2 chemisorption measurements. In addition, the thiophene HDS activities of the monometallic and bimetallic phosphide catalysts have been measured and compared with those of sulfide-based catalysts.