| Abstract
| - The development of the acidity and the relationship between acidity, catalytic activity, and the surface structurefor niobium oxide supported on zirconia were investigated for a series of solids. The catalysts were active for2-propanol dehydration only above a threshold in Nb loading. The acidity was studied by infrared spectroscopyof adsorbed 2,6-dimethylpyridine as a probe molecule, and the onset of activity was correlated with that ofthe formation of relatively strong Brønsted acid sites. The variation in the abundance of these sites alsocorrelated with the catalytic activity. Raman, IR, and UV spectroscopy results indicated that the active siteswere related to polymeric Nb surface species. These results were compared to those previously reported forthe WOx/ZrO2 catalysts.
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