A series of V 2 O 5 catalysts supported on multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT), single wall carbon nanotube (SWCNT), and graphene were synthesized by hydrothermal and reflux methods for oxidative dehydrogenation of propane (ODHP) to propylene. The catalysts were characterized by techniques including the BET surface area measurements, XRD, FTIR, H 2 -TPR, NH 3 -TPD, FESEM, and UV−vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The performance of the catalysts and the supports were subsequently examined in a fixed bed reactor. The main products were propylene, ethylene and CO x . The vanadium catalyst supported on graphene with C/V molar ratio of 1:1 synthesized through the hydrothermal method had the best performance under the reactor test conditions of 450 °C, feed C 3 H 8 /air molar ratio of 0.6, and the total feed flow rate of 90 mL/min resulting in average values of 53.6% and 50.7% for propylene selectivity and propane conversion, respectively. This catalyst was further employed in a series of experiments to study the effects of operating parameters including the reaction temperature, propane to air ratio, and the total feed flow rate on conversions and product selectivities using an experimental design method utilizing the response surface methodology (RSM) with central composite design at three levels. The resulting quadratic equations properly correlated the obtained experimental data. Optimum conditions for maximizing propane conversion and propylene selectivity as well as minimizing the CO x selectivity were determined at the temperature of 500 °C, C 3 H 8 /air molar ratio of 0.28, and total flow rate of 60 mL/min. Ultimately, results under optimum conditions revealed satisfactory agreement between the experimental and predicted data.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.