A simple and promoter free way to synthesize spherical γ-alumina with high hydrothermal stability

It is of great industry interest to develop spherical γ-Al2O3 support with high surface area and high hydrothermal stability. In this work, we developed a simple and promoter free way to prepare spherical γ-Al2O3 support with high hydrothermal stability from homemade pseudoboehmite with high surface area. The structure, morphology, pore structure and hydrothermal stability of the prepared materials were characterized and analyzed by various techniques such as XRD, SEM, TEM and low temperature N2 adsorption. The pseudoboehmite has a large BET surface area (SBET) of 444 m2 g−1 and the spherical γ-Al2O3 has high hydrothermal stability under the investigated conditions. After hydrothermal treatment at 600 °C for 192 h, the SBET of the spherical γ-Al2O3 remains 183 m2 g−1, which is much higher than that of 148 m2 g−1 for the commercial γ-Al2O3 from Sasol.