Boosting selectivity and stability on Pt/BN catalysts for propane dehydrogenation via calcination & reduction-mediated strong metal-support interaction

Propane dehydrogenation (PDH) provides an alternative route for producing propylene. Herein, we demonstrates that h-BN is a promising support of Pt-based catalysts for PDH. The Pt catalysts supported on h-BN were prepared by an impregnation method using Pt(NH3)4(NO3)2 as metal precursors. It has been found that the Pt/BN catalyst undergoing calcination and reduction is highly stable in both PDH reaction and coke-burning regeneration, together with low coke deposition and outstanding propylene selectivity (99%). Detailed characterizations reveal that the high coke resistance and high propylene selectivity of the Pt/BN catalyst are derived not only from the absence of acidity on BN support, but also from the calcination-induced and reduction-adjusted strong metal-support interaction (SMSI) between Pt and BN, which causes the partial encapsulation of Pt particles by BOx overlayers. The BOx overlayers can block the low-coordinated Pt sites and constrain Pt particles into smaller ensembles, suppressing side reactions such as cracking and deep dehydrogenation. Moreover, the BOx overlayers can effectively inhibit Pt sintering by the spatial isolation of Pt during periodic reaction-regeneration cycles. In this work, the catalyst support for PDH is expanded to nonoxide BN, and the understanding of SMSI between Pt and BN will provide rational design strategy for BN-based catalysts.