SYNERGETIC EFFECT OF MOLYBDENUM DIOXIDE ON NICKEL IN THE CATALYTIC HYDROGENATION OF BENZENE.

In the reported experiments, molybdenum dioxide has been deposited on the form of an aerogel (in the autoclave) on nickel Mond. The catalytic activity for the hydrogenation of benzene into cyclohexane at 100 degree C depends on the proportion of MoO//2 and on the temperature of a pretreatment in hydrogen. When this temperature is 440 degree C, the catalytic activity exceeds that of pure nickel Mond and exhibits a maximum for about 10% of MoO//2. This synergetic effect, which is an example of a strong metal-support interaction (SMSI), is explained by the incorporation into the surface of nickel Mond crystals of molybdenum produced by partial reduction of MoO//2, with the formation of an intermetallic compounds MoNi//4.