Abstract: The influence of the support type (alumina or silica with different textural characteristics) on the active surface formation of supported Pd/Ga2O3(In2O3)-WO3-ZrO2/Al2O3(SiO2) catalysts was studied in the octane isomerization reaction. To provide an adequate comparison, the catalytic performance was normalized to the mass of the active component (specific conversion, wt%/g). The use of α-alumina with wide pores (45–60 nm) is associated with the formation of a t-ZrO2 phase having a larger average coherently scattering domain (CSD) size of 12–13 nm. Conversely, the narrow pores of silica (9–10 nm) correlate with the formation of smaller t-ZrO2 domains (about 6 nm). FTIR spectroscopy of adsorbed probe molecules revealed that the deposition of the active component promotes the formation of predominantly Lewis acid sites (LAS) on both supports. The alumina-supported catalysts exhibited enhanced intrinsic activity, achieving a specific octane conversion of 2.5 wt%/g at 240–270°C and maintaining higher selectivity levels: 88% for Pd/WZ/A, 91% for Pd/InWZ/A, and 95% for Pd/GaWZ/A. For silicabased catalysts, the same specific octane conversion required higher temperatures (315–330°C) and was accompanied by a drop in isomerization selectivity to approximately 80%. The results suggest that the support's pore geometry correlates with both the CSD size of the active phase and the observed balance between catalyst activity and selectivity.

Cite: Shkurenok V.A. , Kovba O.A. , Yablokova S.S. , Muromtsev I.V. , Glazneva T.S.
Tungstated zirconia catalysts supported on Al2O3 and SiO2 for octane isomerization
Chimica Techno Acta. 2026. V.13. N4. 10534 :1-12. DOI: 10.15826/chimtech.10534

Dates:

Submitted:	Oct 5, 2026
Accepted:	Nov 3, 2026

Identifiers: No identifiers

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