Ordered Mesoporous Metal Carbides with Enhanced Anisole Hydrodeoxygenation Selectivity

Mesoporous metal carbides are of particular interest as catalysts for a variety of reactions because of their high surface areas, porous networks, nanosized walls, and unique electronic structures. Here, two ordered mesoporous metal carbides, Mo 2 C and W 2 C, were synthesized using a nanocasting approach coupled with a simultaneous decomposition/carburization process under a continuous methane flow. The as-synthesized mesoporous Mo 2 C and W 2 C have three dimensionally ordered porous structures, large surface areas (70–90 m 2 g –1 ), and crystalline walls. In vapor-phase anisole hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) reactions, they exhibited turnover frequencies of approximately 9 and 2 × 10 –4 mol mol CO –1 s –1, respectively, at relatively low reaction temperatures (423–443 K) and ambient hydrogen pressures. Notably, the ordered mesoporous W 2 C catalyst showed a greater than 96% benzene selectivity in anisole HDO, the highest benzene selectivity reported to date.