Development of styrene divinyl benzene catalyst in isotopic exchange reaction of water and hydrogen

Styrene divinyl benzene copolymer (SDBC) is hydrophobic, and porous with large specific surface area. Utilizing these properties, the SDBC was used for the carrier of catalyst in water-hydrogen exchange reaction process, and the hydrophobic platinum catalyst with very high performance was able to be developed. However, the SDBC is usually fine particles smaller than 1 mm, and is not suitable as the filling catalyst for exchange reaction towers. Therefore, in this study, using only platinum as a catalyst metal, the improvement of the property of carriers was emphatically examined, and platinum bearing was proved with an optical or electron microscope. As the result, it was found that the SDBC catalyst showed high activity practically usable as the hydrophobic catalyst for heavy water or tritium exchange reaction. The characteristics of SDBC are explained. The manufacturing processes of the catalyst by making SDBC carriers with fine particles and letting them bear platinum are described. The results of the trial manufacture of spherical, extrusion-formed and honeycomb carrier catalysts are reported. Platinum must be dispersed over the large specific surface area of SDBC carriers. (Kako, I.)