COMPARATIVE STUDY OF IRON CATALYSTS SUPPORTED ON MESOPOROUS CARBON AND SILICA ALUMINA APPLIED IN THE FISCHER TROPSCH SYNTHESIS

The present work presents a comparative study of iron catalysts supported on mesoporous carbon and silica alumina applied in the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. X-ray diffraction analysis showed the presence of Fe2O3 (in the form of hematite or magnetite), suggesting that the iron oxide nanoparticles are well distributed and incorporated in the SA and MC supports. The FTS reaction showed that the mesoporous carbon (25Fe/MC) obtained a greater selectivity for heavier hydrocarbons, around C5+ range (⁓ 67.5%) compared to 25Fe/SA (⁓ 47%). Thus, this study opens a new path to produce biofuels from more selective industrial catalysts.