In situ high-pressure 13C/1H NMR reaction studies of benzyl alcohol oxidation over a Pd/Al2O3 catalyst

Abstract

We report in situ high-pressure NMR kinetic studies of catalytic oxidations inside heterogeneous catalysts exploiting distortionless enhancement by polarisation transfer (DEPT) ¹³C NMR. ¹H NMR diffusion and relaxation time measurements are then used to elucidate trends in reaction kinetics in different solvents. The work shows the feasibility of non-invasively monitoring intra-particle kinetics, transport and adsorption in porous catalysts using a comprehensive NMR toolkit.