Methods for conditioning an ethylene epoxidation catalyst are provided. The conditioning methods comprise contacting an ethylene epoxidation catalyst comprising a carrier, having silver and a rhenium promoter deposited thereon, with a conditioning feed gas comprising oxygen for a period of time of at least 2 hours at a temperature that is above 180 C. and at most 250 C., wherein the contacting of the ethylene epoxidation catalyst with the conditioning feed gas occurs in an epoxidation reactor and in the absence of ethylene. Associated methods for the epoxidation of ethylene are also provided.

A gas treatment apparatus, suitable for use in an air purifying apparatus for the production of breathable air, includes a catalyst including palladium and iron oxide and a source of a volatile nitrogen-containing compound. The apparatus is useful in gas masks, emergency escape hoods and static air treatment apparatus.

A variety of redox catalysts, methods of making, and methods of using thereof are provided. Surface modified redox catalysts are provided having an oxygen carrier core with an outer surface that has been modified to enhance the selectivity of the redox catalyst for oxidative dehydrogenation. The surface modification can include forming a redox catalyst outer layer on the outer surface and/or suppressing sites that form nonselective electrophilic oxygen sites on the outer surface of the oxygen carrier. A variety of methods are provided for making the surface modified redox catalysts, e.g. modified Pechini methods. A variety of methods are provided for using the catalysts for oxidative cracking of light paraffins. Methods are provided for oxidative cracking of light paraffins by contacting the paraffin with a core-shell redox catalyst described herein to convert the paraffins to water and olefins, diolefins, or a combination thereof.

A variety of redox catalysts, methods of making, and methods of using thereof are provided. Surface modified redox catalysts are provided having an oxygen carrier core with an outer surface that has been modified to enhance the selectivity of the redox catalyst for oxidative dehydrogenation. The surface modification can include forming a redox catalyst outer layer on the outer surface and/or suppressing sites that form nonselective electrophilic oxygen sites on the outer surface of the oxygen carrier. A variety of methods are provided for making the surface modified redox catalysts, e.g. modified Pechini methods. A variety of methods are provided for using the catalysts for oxidative cracking of light paraffins. Methods are provided for oxidative cracking of light paraffins by contacting the paraffin with a core-shell redox catalyst described herein to convert the paraffins to water and olefins, diolefins, or a combination thereof.

Zeolites having highly dispersed bimetallic clusters, uniformly distributed in size and composition, encapsulated therein are disclosed. Metal encapsulation and alloying is conferred by introducing ligated metal cation precursors into zeolite synthesis gels, which are subsequently crystallized hydrothermally to form zeolites with metal cations occluded in the pores. The ligated cations are anchored to the zeolite framework via siloxane bridges which enforces their uniform dispersion throughout the zeolite crystals. Treatment of the crystallized zeolites in O.sub.2 and then H.sub.2 forms bimetallic clusters, which remain narrowly distributed in size and composition.

Zeolites having highly dispersed bimetallic clusters, uniformly distributed in size and composition, encapsulated therein are disclosed. Metal encapsulation and alloying is conferred by introducing ligated metal cation precursors into zeolite synthesis gels, which are subsequently crystallized hydrothermally to form zeolites with metal cations occluded in the pores. The ligated cations are anchored to the zeolite framework via siloxane bridges which enforces their uniform dispersion throughout the zeolite crystals. Treatment of the crystallized zeolites in O.sub.2 and then H.sub.2 forms bimetallic clusters, which remain narrowly distributed in size and composition.

Methods for synthesizing a water-soluble titanium-silicon complex are disclosed herein. The titanium-silicon complex can be utilized to produce titanated solid oxide supports and titanated chromium supported catalysts. The titanated chromium supported catalysts subsequently can be used to polymerize olefins to produce, for example, ethylene based homopolymer and copolymers.

Methods for synthesizing a water-soluble titanium-silicon complex are disclosed herein. The titanium-silicon complex can be utilized to produce titanated solid oxide supports and titanated chromium supported catalysts. The titanated chromium supported catalysts subsequently can be used to polymerize olefins to produce, for example, ethylene based homopolymer and copolymers.

A method for activating a catalyst is described comprising the steps of: (i) installing a reduced and passivated catalyst containing crystallites of a catalytic metal comprising nickel, cobalt or iron in elemental form encapsulated by a layer comprising an oxide of the catalytic metal in a reactor, such as a steam methane reforming reactor, in which it is to be used, and (ii) heating the reduced and passivated catalyst in the reactor under a vacuum or an inert gas to a temperature in the range (T.sub.T?X) to (T.sub.T+Y), where T.sub.T is the Tammann temperature of the catalytic metal in elemental form in degrees Centigrade, X is 400 and Y is 200, to form a catalytically active surface on the catalyst without requiring the application of a reducing gas.

A method for activating a catalyst is described comprising the steps of: (i) installing a reduced and passivated catalyst containing crystallites of a catalytic metal comprising nickel, cobalt or iron in elemental form encapsulated by a layer comprising an oxide of the catalytic metal in a reactor, such as a steam methane reforming reactor, in which it is to be used, and (ii) heating the reduced and passivated catalyst in the reactor under a vacuum or an inert gas to a temperature in the range (T.sub.T?X) to (T.sub.T+Y), where T.sub.T is the Tammann temperature of the catalytic metal in elemental form in degrees Centigrade, X is 400 and Y is 200, to form a catalytically active surface on the catalyst without requiring the application of a reducing gas.