Isomerization of n-butane on sulfated zirconia: Evidence for the dominant role of Lewis acidity on the catalytic activity

The catalytic activity of a ZrO2/SO4 catalyst in the isomerization of n-butane at 423 K is reversibly suppressed by addition of CO. IR analysis of the adsorption of CO indicates that the only σ-coordination of CO onto coordinatively unsaturated surface Zr4+ cations occurs in the 300-473 K interval. © 1994 J.C. Baltzer AG, Science Publishers