Catalytic studies of the novel microporous niobium silicate AM-11 Original Research Article

Although the structure of the microporous niobium silicate AM-11 has not been solved yet, a preliminary investigation of the catalytic performance of this solid has been carried out in order to assess its potential in the area of catalysis. AM-11 has been found to possess a substantial amount of Brønsted acidity on the internal surface, whereas the external surface accommodates predominately Lewis acid centres. In continuous flow experiments, methanol reacts rapidly on external Lewis acid sites to produce dimethylether which fails to enter the pore system and desorbs as the main product. Conversely, in the batch reactor, methanol diffuses into the internal surface where it adsorbs before the onset of reaction, yielding a range of C1–C5 hydrocarbons.