Cyclohexanol dehydrogenation over Co/carbon nanotube catalysts and the effect of promoter K on performance

Carbon nanotubes (CNT) were used as support medium to prepare Co catalysts for the selective dehydrogenation of cyclohexanol. Due to the unique structure and electronic property of CNT, Co/CNT possessed less acid sites than Co/activated carbon (AC). It seems to be easier to form multi-point complexes on Co/CNT than on Co/AC, resulting in a little higher selectivity to cyclohexanone and different distribution of by-products. The effect of K addition, attributed to electronic promotion, was also stronger on Co–K/CNT than on Co–K/AC.