Influence of the generation of mesopores on the hydroisomerization activity and selectivity of n-hexane over Pt/mordenite

The activity and selectivity of hydroisomerization of n-hexane over Pt/mord enite is strongly influenced by acid leaching. The activity increases and t he selectivity changes to favor primary products. Leaching selectively modi fies the mordenite structure, making more sites accessible for reaction and facilitating desorption of reaction products. It is argued that the activi ty of untreated mordenite is limited by mass transfer effects. These effect s largely vanish after modification of the zeolite structure by generation of a 3-D micropore structure as well as mesopores. The alleviation of intra crystalline diffusion Limitation is the major factor in activity enhancemen t after acid leaching of Pt/mordenite. (C) 2000 Academic Press.