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, Mo₂C and W₂C, were synthesized using a nanocasting approach coupled with a simultaneous decomposition/carburization process under a continuous methane flow. The as-synthesized mesoporous Mo₂C and W₂C have three dimensionally ordered porous structures, large surface areas (70-90 m² 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 W₂C catalyst showed a greater than 96% benzene selectivity in anisole HDO, the highest benzene selectivity reported to date.