Abstract
n-Hexadecane hydroconversion has been investigated in a series of bifunctionnal metal/acid cata-lysts featuring distinct well defined pore architectures. The acidic component were prepared from dealumi-nated Y zeolites with Si/Al of 15 and 30 post treated in alkaline medium to generate ordered or non-orderedsecondary networks of mesopores and from aluminated ordered mesoporous materials MCM-41, MCM-48,KIT-6 type materials and amorphous silica gel. Activity relates linearly to the strength and number of strongBrönsted acid sites, while selectivity, more precisely the yields in isomerization products, scales directly withthe mesopore volume of the catalysts. The architecture of the mesoporous network, namely the ordering,interconnectivity, homogeneity of the mesopores, affects little catalytst behavior. Confrontation of catalyticdata with diffusion measurements suggests the existence of an optimal mesopore size above which the numberof strong Brönsted sites and the mesopore volume are the only parameters governing catalytic performance.