Investigation of the ammonia adsorption on monolithic SCR catalysts by transient response analysis

The adsorption of ammonia on three different monolithic SCR catalysts was investigated experimentally. Two of the examined monoliths were coated cordierite honeycombs, containing either V₂O₅–WO₃/TiO₂ or V₂O₅/TiO₂ as active components. The third sample was a commercially available extruded monolithic honeycomb consisting of V₂O₅–WO₃/TiO₂, and was tested for comparison. Different transient response methods and a modified temperature programmed desorption (TPD) method were used to investigate the ammonia adsorption in the presence of water (5%) and oxygen (10%). Under typical SCR conditions (stoichiometric ratio NH₃:NO<1), the ammonia coverage of the WO₃-free catalyst sample was significantly lower. Ammonia is more strongly adsorbed on the WO₃-containing catalyst. The extruded catalyst adsorbed substantially larger amounts of ammonia especially at low temperatures, leading to a slow response under transient conditions.     

Transient kinetic study of the SCR-DeNOx reaction

The unsteady-state kinetics of the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO with NH₃ is studied over V₂O₅–WO₃/TiO₂ model catalysts by means of the transient response method. NH₃ strongly adsorbs onto the catalyst surface whereas NO does not adsorb appreciably. A dynamic mathematical model based on a Temkin-type desorption process for NH₃ and a SCR reaction rate with a complex dependence on the ammonia surface coverage is well suited to represent the data.     

Modelling of an SCR catalytic converter for diesel exhaust after treatment: Dynamic effects at low temperature

As part of a fundamental and applied work on the development of an unsteady mathematical model of the NH₃-selective catalytic reduction (SCR) process for design and control of integrated after-treatment systems of heavy-duty engines, we present herein a transient kinetic analysis of the standard SCR NO + NH₃ system which provides new insight in the catalytic kinetics and mechanism prevailing at low temperatures. Based on kinetic runs performed over a commercial powdered V₂O₅–WO₃–TiO₂ catalyst in the 175–450 °C T-range feeding NH₃ and NO (1000 ppm) in the presence of H₂O (1–10%, v/v) and O₂ (2–6%, v/v), an original dual-site modified redox rate law is derived which effectively accounts for NH₃ inhibition effects observed during transient reactive experiments at T < 250 °C. We also demonstrate that implementation of the novel modified redox kinetics into a fully predictive 1D + 1D model of SCR monolith reactors can significantly improve simulations of SCR transient runs at different scales, including engine test bench experiments over full-scale SCR honeycomb catalysts.     

NOX removal in excess oxygen by plasma-enhanced selective catalytic reduction

In the off-gases of internal combustion engines running with oxygen excess, non-thermal plasmas (NTPs) have an oxidative potential, which results in an effective conversion of NO to NO₂. In combination with appropriate catalysts and ammonia (NH₃-SCR) or hydrocarbons (HC-SCR) as a reducing agent, this can be utilized to reduce nitric oxides (NO and NO₂) synergistically to molecular nitrogen.

The combination of SCR and cold plasma enhanced the overall reaction rate and allowed an effective removal of NO_X at low temperatures. Using NH₃ as a reducing agent, NO_X was converted to N₂ on zeolites or NH₃-SCR catalysts like V₂O₅–WO₃/TiO₂ at temperatures as low as 100–200 °C. Significant synergetic effects of plasma and catalyst treatment were observed both for NH₃ stored by ion exchange on the zeolite and for continuous NH₃ supply.

Certain modifications of Al₂O₃ and ZrO₂ have been found to be effective as catalysts in the plasma-assisted HC-SCR in oxygen excess. With an energy supply of about 30 eV/NO-molecule, 500 ppm NO was reduced by more than half at a temperature of 300 °C and a space velocity of 20 000 h⁻¹ at the catalyst. The synergistic combinations of NTP and both NH₃- and HC-SCR have been verified under real diesel engine exhaust conditions.     

V2O5/（TiO2-SiO2）脱硝催化剂新型制备工艺及性能研究

将偏钒酸铵和羟丙基甲基纤维素搅拌混溶制备滴胶液,以自制的7孔圆柱蜂窝钛硅复合氧化物为载体,采用滴胶涂覆法制备了V₂O₅/（TiO₂-SiO₂）脱硝催化剂。通过X射线衍射（XRD）、程序升温还原（H₂-TPR）、比表面积分析（BET）和催化剂评价等方法对制备的脱硝催化剂进行分析表征。考察了五氧化二钒在钛硅复合氧化物载体上的分布、五氧化二钒涂覆量等对催化剂性能的影响,并就反应温度、反应空速、氨与一氧化氮物质的量比等条件对脱硝催化剂活性的影响进行了研究。实验结果表明,使用五氧化二钒涂覆量为1.2%（质量分数）的V₂O₅/（TiO₂-SiO₂）脱硝催化剂,在反应温度为320 ℃、空速为10 000 h^-1、氨与一氧化氮物质的量比为1.2条件下进行脱硝活性实验,一氧化氮转化率达到93.0%。经与工业脱硝催化剂对比实验表明,制备的V₂O₅/（TiO₂-SiO₂）脱硝催化剂性能优良,并且降低了钒的使用量,节约了生产成本,减少了环境污染。     

Other catalytic properties

The behavior of fresh and aged EUROCAT V₂O₅–WO₃/TiO₂ SCR catalysts in the (I) oxidative dehydrogenation of light alkanes, and conversion of (ii) propan-2-ol, (iii) NO in the presence of propene and oxygen, (iv) propane and propene and (v) chloropropane is reported to analyse possible modifications of the catalyst properties during use and give a more comprehensive general picture of its surface and reactivity properties.     

Surface area and porosity, X-ray diffraction and chemical analyses

Texture, structure and composition of the fresh and the used EUROCAT oxide V₂O₅–WO₃/TiO₂ SCR catalysts have been investigated with aid of nitrogen adsorption/desorption at 77 K, mercury porosimetry, X-ray diffraction and chemical analyses. The BET specific surface area is around 47 and 46 m²/g for the fresh and the used catalyst, respectively. Both samples are essentially mesoporous, with pore diameters centred in the range 10–20 nm according to the data derived from the nitrogen adsorption and around 40 nm according to the mercury porosimetry. The anatase form of TiO₂ and traces of orthorhombic V₂O₅ are the only crystalline phases identified in both materials. According to the chemical analysis there are no significant differences in the contents of the main constituting elements between the fresh and the used catalyst. Selective dissolution with NH₃ aq. reveals that in the used catalyst the amount of vanadium component not susceptible to the treatment increases.     

Catalytic activation of ceramic filter elements for combined particle separation, NOx removal and VOC total oxidation

The development of a catalytically active filter element for combined particle separation and NO_x removal or VOC total oxidation, respectively, is presented. For NO_x removal by selective catalytic reduction (SCR) a catalytic coating based on a TiO₂–V₂O₅–WO₃ catalyst system was developed on a ceramic filter element. Different TiO₂ sols of tailor-made mean particle size between 40 and 190 nm were prepared by the sol–gel process and used for the impregnation of filter element cylinders by the incipient wetness technique. The obtained TiO₂-impregnated sintered filter element cylinders exhibit BET surface areas in the range between 0.5 and 1.3 m²/g. Selected TiO₂-impregnated filter element cylinders of high BET surface area were catalytically activated by impregnation with a V₂O₅ and WO₃ precursor solution. The obtained catalytic filter element cylinders show high SCR activity leading to 96% NO conversion at 300 °C, a filtration velocity of 2 cm/s and an NO inlet concentration of 500 vol.-ppm. The corresponding differential pressures fulfill the requirements for typical hot gas filtration applications. For VOC total oxidation, a TiO₂-impregnated filter element support was catalytically activated with a Pt/V₂O₅ system. Complete oxidation of propene with 100% selectivity to CO₂ was achieved at 300 °C, a filtration velocity of 2 cm/s and a propene inlet concentration of 300 vol.-ppm.     

Chemical deactivation of V2O5/WO3–TiO2 SCR catalysts by additives and impurities from fuels, lubrication oils and urea solution: Part II. Characterization study of the effect of alkali and alkaline earth metals

A characterization study on a practice-oriented V₂O₅/WO₃–TiO₂ SCR catalyst deactivated by Ca and K, respectively, was carried out using NH₃-TPD, DRIFT spectroscopy, and XPS as well as theoretical DFT calculations. It was found from NH₃-TPD experiments that strongly basic elements like K or Ca drastically affect the acidity of the catalysts. Detailed DRIFT spectroscopy experiments revealed that these poisoning agents mostly interact with the Brønsted acid sites of the V₂O₅ active phase, thus affecting the NH₃ adsorption. Moreover, these experiments also indicated that the V⁵⁺ = O sites are much less reactive on the poisoned catalysts. XPS investigations of the O 1s binding energies showed that the oxygen atoms of the V⁵⁺ = O sites are affected by the presence of the poisoning agents. Based on these results and on DFT calculations with model clusters of the vanadia surface, the poisoning mechanism is explained by the stabilization of the non atomic holes of the (0 1 0) V₂O₅ phase as a result of the deactivation element. Consequently, V–OH Brønsted acid sites and V⁵⁺ = O sites are inhibited, which are both of crucial importance in the SCR process. The deactivation model also gives an explanation to the very low concentrations of potassium needed to deactivate the SCR catalyst, since one metal atom sitting on such a non-atomic hole site deactivates up to four active vanadium centers.     

Competition between NO reduction and NO decomposition over reduced V–W–O catalysts

The SCR of NO and NO decomposition were investigated over a V–W–O/Ti(Sn)O₂ catalyst on a Cr–Al steel monolith. The conversions of NO and NH₃ over the reduced and oxidised catalysts were determined. The higher conversion of NO than of NH₃ was observed in SCR over the reduced catalyst and very close conversions of both substrates were found over the oxidised one. The increase of the pre-reduction temperature was found to cause an increase in catalyst activity and its stability in direct NO decomposition. The surface tungsten cations substituted for vanadium ones in vanadia-like active species are considered to be responsible for the direct NO decomposition. The results of DFT calculations for the 10-pyramidal clusters: V₁₀O₃₁H₁₂ (V–V) and V₉WO₃₁H₁₂ (V–W) modelling (0 0 1) surfaces of vanadia and WO₃–V₂O₅ solid solution (s.s.) active species, respectively, show that preferable conditions for NO adsorption exist on W sites of s.s. species and that reduction causes an increase in their ability for electron back donation to the adsorbed molecule. Electron back donation is believed to be responsible for the electron structure reorganisation in the adsorbed NO molecule resulting in its decomposition. The high selectivity of NO decomposition to dinitrogen was considered to be connected with the formation of the tungsten nitrosyl complexes solely via the W–N bond.     

XPS and SIMS characterization

XPS study V₂O₅–WO₃/TiO₂ mixed oxide catalysts for Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) of NO_x carried out by researchers from ten different laboratories shows good reproducibility of the chemical shift results. The binding energies of the corresponding core level spectra allow us to identify the chemical states of main elements as Ti(IV), V(V) and W(VI). No other oxidation states for these elements were observed both for fresh/used and for crushed/monolith samples. Discrepancy in quantitative data can be proposed to arise from the heterogeneity of their composition as a function of depth. This suggestion is confirmed by SIMS data and ion etching experiments which indicate surface location of V₂O₅ phase, as well as impurity ones, with respect to TiO₂ and WO₃ and their redistribution as result of catalyst operation.     

制备方法对V_2O_5-WO_3/TiO_2选择性催化还原催化剂性能的影响

采用共沉淀法、溶胶-凝胶法和浸渍法制备了V2O5质量分数4%和WO3质量分数6%的V2O5-WO3/TiO2选择性催化还原催化剂,对比了3种方法制备的催化剂选择性催化还原NO性能。采用X射线衍射、热重、N2吸附-脱附和程序升温还原等对制备的V2O5-WO3/Ti O2催化剂的结构和性质进行表征,结果表明,共沉淀法制备的V2O5-WO3/TiO2催化剂具有更好的选择性催化还原NO活性和更大的比表面积,影响共沉淀法选择性催化还原NO活性的主要因素是催化剂的热稳定性、表面羟基数量、比表面积、粒径分布以及V、W与Ti之间的内在作用。     

Evaluation of V2O5–WO3–TiO2 and alternative SCR catalysts in the abatement of VOCs

Two different commercial SCR catalysts belonging to the V₂O₅–WO₃–TiO₂ system, and different alternative catalysts based on Mn, Fe, Cr, Al and Ti oxides have been tested in the conversion of VOCs in excess oxygen in a temperature range typical of the SCR process (500–700 K). Propane, propene, isopropanol, acetone, 2-chloropropane and 1,2-dichlorobenzene have been fed with excess oxygen and helium. The industrial catalysts are poorly active in the conversion of propane, giving mainly rise to propene by oxy-dehydrogenation. The conversion of propene is higher with CO as the predominant product. In any case, the oxidation activity depends on the vanadium content of the catalyst. Isopropanol is mainly converted into acetone and propene, while acetone is burnt predominantly to CO. Mn- and Fe- containing systems are definitely more active in the conversion of hydrocarbons and oxygenates, giving rise almost exclusively to CO₂. 2-Chloropropane is selectively dehydrochlorinated to propene and HCl starting from 350 K, propene being later burnt to CO on the industrial V₂O₅–WO₃–TiO₂ catalysts, whose combustion activity is, apparently, not affected by chlorine. On the contrary, chlorine strongly affects the behavior of Mn-based catalysts, that are active in the dehydrochlorination of 2-chloropropane, but are simultaneously deactivated with respect to their combustion catalytic activity. The conversion of 1,2-dichlorobenzene gives rise to important amounts of heavy products in our experimental conditions with relatively high reactant concentration.     

Photodegradation catalyst screening by combinatorial methodology

In this work, a combinatorial methodology was developed for photodegradation catalyst screening. A fluorescence imaging detection system was designed for high throughput analysis, 1,6-hexamethylenediamine was used as the probe molecule for catalyst testing. The photodegradation activity of catalysts was evaluated by 1,6-hexamethylenediamine consumption during the photodegradation reaction. The methodology could provide reliable results. We found that pure TiO₂, ZrO₂, Nb₂O₅, MoO₃, and WO₃ did not show much activity for 1,6-hexamethylenediamine photodegradation under visible light. TiO₂ catalysts doped with different metal ions were tested. When TiO₂ was doped with Ta₂O₅, Nb₂O₅, V₂O₅, MoO₃, or WO₃, higher activity for photodegradation was observed. The doping of La³⁺, Ba²⁺, and Br⁻ to TiO₂ did not improve the catalytic activities. When doping TiO₂ with Mn²⁺, Cl⁻, Al³⁺, Cu²⁺, Fe³⁺, Na⁺, Mg²⁺, Li⁺, F⁻, Co²⁺, or K⁺, catalytic activity was lower than that of pure TiO₂. After elaborate catalysts screening, we discovered new catalysts, such as 50–70% TiO₂/0–20% WO₃/20–40% VO_2.5 and 20–30% TiO₂/30–50% MoO₃/40–60% VO_2.5 as well as 30% WO₃/20% ZrO₂/50% NbO_2.5 (synthesized from ZrCl₄, NbCl₅, and (NH₄)₅H₅[H₂(WO₄)₆]·H₂O in ethanol solution or suspension) and 60–70% WO₃/Nb₂O₅ (synthesized from WCl₆ and NbCl₅ in ethanol solution). We observed that the catalytic activity is sensitive to preparation methods and catalyst specific surface areas. When P123 (HO(CH₂CH₂O)₂₀(CH₂CH(CH₃)O)₇₀(CH₂CH₂O)₂₀H, designated EO₂₀PO₇₀EO₂₀) was used as template to synthesize mesoporous materials, the mesoporous catalysts showed higher activity than regular catalytic materials.     

Reactivity of V2O5&z.sbnd;WO3TiO2 de-NOx catalysts by transient methods

The reactivity of ternary V₂O₅&z.sbnd;WO₃TiO₂ de-NO_xing catalysts with compositions similar to those of commercial catalysts (WO₃ ca. 9% w/w, V₂O₅ < 2% w/w) is investigated by transient techniques (temperature programmed desorption, TPD; temperature programmed surface reaction, TPSR; and temperature programmed reaction, TPR). The results indicate that the reactivity of the ternary catalysts in the SCR reaction increases on increasing the vanadia loading, and that the ternary catalysts are more active than the corresponding binary vanadia-titania samples with the same V₂O₅ loading. Indeed the SCR reaction is monitored at lower temperatures and high NO conversions are also preserved at high temperatures. TPSR and TPR data show that at low temperatures the SCR reaction occurs via a redox mechanism that involves at first the participation of the catalyst lattice oxygen and then the reoxidation of the reduced sites by gas-phase oxygen. Based on TPSR and TPR data, the higher reactivity of the ternary catalysts has been related to their superior redox properties, in line with previous chemico-physical characterisation studies. The catalyst redox properties thus appear as a key-factor in controlling the reactivity of V₂O₅&z.sbnd;WO₃TiO₂ de-NO_xing catalysts at low temperatures. The results also show that at high temperatures the surface acidity plays an important role in the adsorption and activation of ammonia.     

Improvement of catalytic activity and sulfur-resistance of Ag/TiO2–Al2O3 for NO reduction with propene under lean burn conditions

Ag-based catalysts supported on various metal oxides, Al₂O₃, TiO₂, and TiO₂–Al₂O₃, were prepared by the sol–gel method. The effect of SO₂ on catalytic activity was investigated for NO reduction with propene under lean burn condition. The results showed the catalytic activities were greatly enhanced on Ag/TiO₂–Al₂O₃ in comparison to Ag/Al₂O₃ and Ag/TiO₂, especially in the low temperature region. Application of different characterization techniques revealed that the activity enhancement was correlated with the properties of the support material. Silver was highly dispersed over the amorphous system of TiO₂–Al₂O₃. NO₃⁻ rather than NO₂⁻ or NOx reacted with the carboxylate species to form CN or NCO. NO₂ was the predominant desorption species in the temperature programmed desorption (TPD) of NO on Ag/TiO₂–Al₂O₃. More amount of formate (HCOO⁻) and CN were generated on the Ag/TiO₂–Al₂O₃ catalyst than the Ag/Al₂O₃ catalyst, due to an increased number of Lewis acid sites. Sulfate species, resulted from SO₂ oxidation, played dual roles on catalytic activity. On aged samples, the slow decomposition of accumulated sulfate species on catalyst surface led to poor NO conversion due to the blockage of these species on active sites. On the other hand, catalytic activity was greatly enhanced in the low temperature region because of the enhanced intensity of Lewis acid site caused by the adsorbed sulfate species. The rate of sulfate accumulation on the Ag/TiO₂–Al₂O₃ system was relatively slow. As a consequence, the system showed superior capability for selective adsorption of NO and SO₂ toleration to the Ag/Al₂O₃ catalyst.     

NO reduction with NH3 over chromia–vanadia catalysts supported on TiO2: an in situ Raman spectroscopic study

In situ Raman spectroscopy was used for studying the ternary 2% CrO₃–6% V₂O₅/TiO₂ catalyst, for which a synergistic effect between vanadia and chromia leads to enhanced catalytic performance for the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO with NH₃. The structural properties of this catalyst were studied under NH₃/NO/O₂/N₂/SO₂/H₂O atmospheres at temperatures up to 400 °C and major structural interactions between the surface chromia and vanadia species are observed. The effects of oxygen, ammonia, water vapor and sulfur dioxide presence on the in situ Raman spectra are presented and discussed.     

溶胶-凝胶原位合成宽活性温度V2O5/TiO2脱硝催化剂

利用溶胶-凝胶技术原位合成一系列不同V₂O₅担载量的V₂O₅/TiO₂催化剂,通过BET、XRD、NH₃-TPD及紫外-可见光等手段对催化剂进行表征。结果表明：制备的催化剂均具有介孔结构,V₂O₅在TiO₂表面高度分散,且存在3种典型的酸性位。通过选择性催化还原反应对V₂O₅/TiO₂催化剂进行活性评价,结果显示随着V₂O₅含量的增加,NO转化率大于75%的温度窗口向低温方向偏移,含10% （质量分数）V₂O₅的催化剂的NO转化率为80%的温度窗口最宽为200～450℃,240℃时20 h连续实验表现出稳定的抗硫抗水性能。结合紫外-可见光谱分析,揭示了钒掺杂所形成的单聚和低聚钒酸盐为催化剂的活性组分。     

Characterization by solid state V NMR spectroscopy

The fresh catalyst V₂O₅–WO₃/TiO₂ and catalyst used in SCR for 9000 h have been studied by the solid state ⁵¹V NMR spectroscopy in static and MAS conditions. According to ⁵¹V NMR in both samples the majority of vanadium sites are in a distorted octahedral environment similar to that in V₂O₅. There is a strong interaction between vanadium oxide and the support, but the concentration of vanadium atoms strongly bound to the surface is very small and can be detected only in MAS NMR experiments or after removing the excess of V₂O₅. There is no influence of WO₃ additives on the structure of the particles of V₂O₅, whereas the influence on the structure of strongly bounded V cannot be excluded. Combination of static (wide line) and MAS NMR techniques permit the characterization of not only the structure of the vanadium species but also small changes in their local environment. Hence these experiments show that there are some distortions of the local environment of vanadium sites of the vanadium oxide particles compared with the polycrystalline V₂O₅; treatment by SCR increases these distortions.     

Development of new catalysts for deep hydrodesulfurization of gas oil

TiO₂–Al₂O₃ composite supports have been prepared by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) over γ-Al₂O₃ substrate, using TiCl₄ as the precursor. High dispersion of TiO₂ overlayer on the surface of Al₂O₃ has been obtained, and no cluster formation has been detected. The catalytic behavior of Mo supported on Al₂O₃, TiO₂ and TiO₂–Al₂O₃ composite has been investigated for the hydrodesulfurization (HDS) of dibenzothiophene (DBT) and methyl-substituted DBT derivatives. The conversion over the Mo catalysts supported on TiO₂–Al₂O₃ composite, in particular for the HDS of 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene (4,6-DMDBT) is much higher than that of conversion obtained over Mo catalyst supported on Al₂O₃. The ratio of the corresponding cyclohexylbenzenes/biphenyls is increased over Mo catalyst supported on TiO₂–Al₂O₃ composite support. This means that the reaction rate of prehydrogenation of an aromatic ring rather than the rate of hydrogenolysis of C–S bond cleavage is accelerated for the HDS of DBT derivatives. The Mo/TiO₂–Al₂O₃ catalyst leads to higher catalytic performance for deep HDS of gas oil.