SELECTIVE OXIDATIVE DEHYDROGENATION OF BUTENES ON FERRITE CATALYSTS.

In this review, the authors summarize some of the recent advances in the understanding of factors that determine selectivity in the selective oxidation of hydrocarbons. Although most of the discussions involve the oxidative dehydrogenation of butene to butadiene on ferrite catalysts, the principles are applicable to other oxidation systems. In this regard, it has been demonstrated that the selectivity depends on a variety of factors ranging from the nature of the transition metal ion which determines the interaction of butene and butadiene on the catalyst and the ability to activate gaseous oxygen to form a highly reactive surface species, the crystal structure which determines the reduction and oxidation properties, the crystallite size, and the orientation of the exposed crystal planes.