Tungsten-Titanium pillared clay catalyst: Preparation, characterization and catalytic activity

Tungsten-titanium pillared clay and sulfated-titanium pillared clay catalysts were prepared and characterized by different techniques: x-ray diffraction, bet surface area - pore volume measurements, chemical analysis, thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis, temperature programmed reduction by hydrogen then studied for n-hexane isomerisation reaction. the simultaneous addition of both tungsten and titanium solutions to the clay suspension induces an increase of the basal spacing leading to a well defined structure of the wti-pillared clay. better micro porosity but lower specific surface areas at high temperature were observed on wti-pillared clay compared to ti-pillared clays prepared in presence or absence of sulfate. all the investigated materials are active in the n-hexane isomerisation reaction. furthermore the wti-pillared clay catalyst displays the highest selectivity towards mono-ramified isomers products.