Strong Oxide–Support Interactions Accelerate Selective Dehydrogenation of Propane by Modulating the Surface Oxygen

The catalytic selectivity of supported catalysts can be tuned by the appropriate design of synthesis strategies and catalyst structures. We provide a persuasive strategy to turn manganese oxide from a combustion catalyst into a selective catalyst for oxidative dehydrogenation of propane (ODHP). This success is achieved by anchoring amorphous manganese oxide with thin-layer morphology on a ceria support via constructing strong oxide–support interactions (SOSIs). Multiple structure and mechanism investigations demonstrate that the SOSI forms active interfacial oxygen sites for propane activation and oxygen-deficient manganese oxide to stabilize propene and hinder overoxidation under the ODHP conditions. These features boost the ODHP to exhibit simultaneously high activity and propene selectivity, outperforming the general manganese oxide catalysts and even the practically promising vanadium catalysts. This research work deepens remarkably the structure–performance relationship understanding of metal oxide catalysts in ODHP.