Modification of Activity and Selectivity of NiMo/SBA-15 HDS Catalysts by Grafting of Different Metal Oxides on the Support Surface

In the context of searching for new catalysts for hydrodesulfurization (HDS) of petroleum, in the present work a series of NiMo catalysts supported on SBA-15 materials modified by different metal oxides were prepared and tested in dibenzothiophene HDS. The behavior of the HDS catalysts prepared using SBA-15 supports grafted with alkaline earth metal oxides (MgO, CaO, BaO) is described for the first time and compared to that observed for the supports modified with alumina (Al2O3) or transition metal oxides (TiO2, ZrO2) in order to inquire into the effect of the nature of the metal oxide incorporated in the support on the catalytic activity and selectivity of the NiMo catalysts.