Facilitating the reduction of V–O bonds on VOx/ZrO2 catalysts for non-oxidative propane dehydrogenation

Supported vanadium oxide is a promising catalyst in propane dehydrogenation due to its competitive performance and low cost. Nevertheless, it remains a grand challenge to understand the structure-performance correlation due to the structural complexity of VO _x -based catalysts in a reduced state. This paper describes the structure and catalytic properties of the VO _x /ZrO₂ catalyst. When using ZrO₂ as the support, the catalyst shows six times higher turnover frequency (TOF) than using commercial γ-Al₂O₃. Combining H₂-temperature programmed reduction, in situ Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and theoretical studies, we find that the interaction between VO _x and ZrO₂ can facilitate the reduction of V-O bonds, including V[double bond, length as m-dash]O, V-O-V and V-O-Zr. The promoting effect could be attributed to the formation of low coordinated V species in VO _x /ZrO₂ which is more active in C-H activation. Our work provides a new insight into understanding the structure-performance correlation in VO _x -based catalysts for non-oxidative propane dehydrogenation.