Enhanced reactivity of direct propylene epoxidation with H2 and O2 over Ge-modified Au/TS-1 catalysts

The epoxidation of propylene with H2–O2 mixtures was studied over a gold catalyst supported on a Ge-modified TS-1 catalyst at 170 °C. Shifts of X-ray diffraction lines to lower angle showed that the Ge was incorporated into the structure of the TS-1. The presence of Ge more than doubled the conversion from 1.6% to 4% while increasing selectivity from 87% to 91%. Density functional theory calculations indicated that the origin of the enhanced activity was a ligand effect of Ge on Ti, which lowered the activation energy for the critical epoxidation step.