PREPARATION AND CATALYTIC ACTIVITY FOR ISOPROPYL BENZENE CRACKING OF Co, Mo AND Co/Mo-Al2O3-PILLARED MONTMORILLONITE CATALYSTS

Hasanudin Hasanudin (Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Sriwijaya University, Inderalaya, Palembang 30662, Indonesia)
Karna Wijaya (Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Gadjah Mada University, Sekip Utara, Yogyakarta 55281, Indonesia)
Budi Santoso (Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Sriwijaya University, Inderalaya, Palembang 30662, Indonesia)

Indonesian Journal of Chemistry
Vol 9, No 2 (2009)

It has been prepared Co, Mo and Co/Mo-Al2O3-pillared montmorillonite catalysts using montmorillonite clay  as raw material. The structure and porosity of the catalysts were determined using N2 adsorption-desorption and FT-IR spectroscopy analysis methods. Isopropyl benzene cracking using these catalysts were used to test the catalytic activity and performance of Co, Mo and Co/Mo-Al2O3-pillared montmorillonites.  Characterization results showed that pillarization resulted in the increase of the total pore volume and specific surface area of the clay. Meanwhile, transition metals (Co, Mo and Co/Mo) loaded on Al2O3-pillared monmorillonites could increase the catalytic activity of the catalysts for isopropyl benzene cracking significantly.