Cu-doped alumina-pillared montmorillonite samples have been prepared and characterized with X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET), electron spin resonance (ESR) and inductive coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP AES) techniques. The results show that the catalysts are porous materials with copper species located in the interlayer, present either as isolated Cu2+ ions anchored at alumina pillars or as patches of amorphous CuO. Catalytic tests with hydroxylation of phenol show that the clay samples possess significant activity for dihydroxybenzene (DHB) formation, comparable with the reference TS-1 catalyst. Experiments with changing the substrate dosing indicate that adsorption and activation of phenol molecules is a necessary condition for the reaction to occur.

Catalytic properties of Cu-doped alumina-pillared montmorillonite samples have been tested in the liquid phase oxidation of toluene, o-, m-, and p-xylene with hydrogen peroxide. The results show that the clay samples possess significant activity for both the oxidation of methyl groups and hydroxylation of the aromatic ring. Physicochemical characterization of the catalysts using XRD, BET, ESR and ICP-AES techniques show that they are porous materials with Cu species located in the interlayer, present either as isolated Cu2+ ions anchored at alumina pillars or as patches of amorphous CuO. The dependence of the overall yields on the amount of Cu dopant is discussed and explained in terms of the catalyst structural properties.

A series of V-doped titania-pillared clay catalysts, characterized by ICP-AES chemical analysis, X-ray diffraction, BET surface area measurement, and ESR spectroscopy, have been tested in the selective catalytic reduction of NO by NH3. An ESR analysis shows that V dopant is anchored to the titania pillars. Vanadyl species with differing degrees of in-plane V-O π-covalent bonding are produced depending on the method of sample preparation. Polymeric V species appear as the V content is increased. Catalytic performance of these systems depends on the method of preparation and on the V content. The best catalyst, converting 90-100% NO in the temperature range 523-623 K, is obtained by exchange of pillared montmorillonite with vanadyl ions, at an extent of exchange below the level where significant amounts of polymeric V species appear. The co-pillared catalyst, containing vanadyl centres characterized by a higher degree of in-plane ncovalent bonding (according to ESR), is less selective than the exchanged samples.