Oleylamine-ProtectedMetal (Pt, Pd) Nanoparticlesfor PseudohomogeneousCatalytic Cracking of JP-10 Jet Fuel.

Catalytic crackingof hydrocarbon fuels is an effective way tocool aircraft materials under hypersonic flight. Pseudohomogeneouscatalysis is an alternative to overcome the problems of traditionalcatalyst coatings. Herein, we employed the Brust–Schiffrinmethod to synthesize Pt and Pd nanoparticles (NPs) using oleylamineas the protecting ligand. The particle size can be controlled by tuningthe ratio of protecting ligand, and uniform NPs can be obtained atan oleylamine/NP molar ratio of 2, with Pt and Pd NPs of 1–3and 2–5 nm, respectively. IR and TG characterizations confirmedthat the amine group of oleylamine is chelated on the metal surfacewhereas the hydrophobic carbon chain is exposed in the hydrocarbonfuel. As a result, the NPs are highly dispersible in jet fuel JP-10without any precipitation after standing 12 months, providing thepossibility of pseudohomogeneous catalysis. Suspensions containingPt and Pd NPs (50 ppm) exhibited markedly enhanced cracking performance,with cracking conversions, gas yields, and heat sinks at 680 °Cthat were, respectively, 4.5, 4.4, and 1.3 and 3.1, 3.6, and 1.2 timesof pure JP-10. In particular, Pt NPs can reduce the onset temperatureof the cracking reaction from 650 to 600 °C. This work demonstratesthe potential of fuel-dispersible NPs in hypersonic applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]