Selective Dimerization and Hydrogenation of Ethylene on Active Zirconium Oxide with Coordinatively Unsaturated Surface Sites

The evacuation of the ZrO2 catalyst at higher temperatures led to the appearance of an abnormal absorption and photoluminescence due to the formation of coordinatively unsaturated surface sites. These active ZrO2 catalysts having coordinatively unsaturated surface sites exhibited a high catalytic activity for the selective dimerization of C2H4 to 2-C4H8. In the presence of H2 and C2H4, the formation of C4H10 was observed in place of 2-C4H8. The significant role of the coordinatively unsaturated surface sites in these reactions on the active ZrO2 catalyst has been clarified in detail for the first time.