NO reduction performance of Rh paste catalyst on YSZ under steady state and forced oscillation electropromotion conditions

The technique of cyclic voltammetry was applied in conjunction with on-line catalytic product analysis to investigate the electrochemical promotion of NO reduction by C₃H₆ in presence of O₂ on Rh catalyst-electrode films on YSZ at temperatures 350–490 °C. Cyclic linear potential sweep amperometry under catalytic reaction conditions leads to cyclic non-Faradaic electrochemical modifications in the CO₂ formation and NO reduction rates which are compared to those obtained under steady state potentiostatic operation.     

The non-linear behaviour of the NO-H2 reaction over Rh surfaces

In this paper we describe the non-linearity of the NO-H₂ reaction over Rh surfaces. Rate oscillations have been observed over a stepped (111) surface with (100) steps, (Rh(533) at low pressures (10^?4 Pa) below 500 K, while no oscillations could be observed under these conditions over a Rh(100) surface and a stepped (100) surface with (111) steps, Rh(711). The thermal stability of the N atoms formed during the reaction explains the observed structure sensitivity. Moreover, the results suggest that diffusion of N atoms is needed to synchronise the rate oscillations, a process that is absent on Rh(100) and Rh(711).     

Reduction of NO by hydrogen versus reduction by CO over Pt, Pd and Rh clusters in NaX zeolite

The activation of hydrogen and CO was examined using D₂+H₂ equilibration at room temperature and by ¹³CO+C¹⁸O scrambling at 170°C, respectively, the adsorption of NO at room temperature and its TPD were used to characterise the activation of NO. These reactions were compared with the NO reduction by carbon monoxide and by hydrogen. It appeared that the M/NaX clusters (M=Pt, Rh or Pd) exhibit opposite behaviour in the NO reduction by these two reductants: with CO the sequence was RhPdPt, while platinum (Pt/NaX) was the most active catalyst (PtPd>Rh) when hydrogen was employed.

The CO scrambling was found to be most rapid over Pt, while the adsorption and dissociation of NO was most extensive over Rh; in the NO reduction by CO the weak CO activation over Rh was overwhelmed by the strong NO dissociation. On the other hand, the extensive NO adsorption and dissociation over Rh hindered the dissociation of hydrogen, which resulted in the lowest activity in the NO reduction by H₂ accompanied by an intermediate formation of N₂O. This was not the case with Pt, over which easily dissociated hydrogen reacted with probably molecularly adsorbed NO.

The reduction of N₂O by hydrogen proceeded readily over all metallic clusters at room temperature, being thus, either of the same activity as that of NO+H₂ reaction, or even of higher activity over Pd and especially over Rh. The easy reduction of N₂O by hydrogen does not agree with the reduction by CO, which was found to proceed worse than that of NO.

In some cases, also bimetallic species (PtRh/NaX, PtPd/NaX, PdRh/NaX) were employed, as well as oxidized M clusters.     

富氧条件下Rh/Co_3O_4催化剂对C_3H_6还原NO性能的影响

采用液相沉淀法制备Co3O4氧化物,并以其为载体制备负载型Rh催化剂。考察不同焙烧温度制备的载体和催化剂的结构、织构、氧化还原性能及其对C3H6催化还原NO性能的影响。结果发现,经600℃焙烧的载体制备的Rh/Co3O4催化剂中Rh与Co3O4的相互作用较强,促进对N—O键的削弱作用,提高对C3H6还原NO的还原能力。在相同实验条件下,当体系中C3H6为500×10-6、NO为500×10-6和O2体积分数为5%时,NO转化率50%,催化性能优于Rh/Al2O3催化剂。     

Electrochemical promotion of Rh catalyst in gas-phase reduction of NO by propylene

The concept of non-faradaic electrochemical modification of catalytic activity (NEMCA) has been applied for the in situ control of catalytic activity of a rhodium film deposited on YSZ (yttria stabilized zirconia) solid electrolyte towards reduction of 1000 ppm NO by 1000 ppm C₃H₆ in presence of excess (5000 ppm) O₂ at 300 °C. A temporary heating at this feed composition results in a long-lasting deactivation of the catalyst under open circuit conditions due to partial oxidation of the rhodium surface. Positive current application (5 A) over both the active and the deactivated catalysts gives rise to an enhancement of N₂ and CO₂ production, the latter exceeding several hundred times the faradaic rate. While active rhodium exhibits a reversible behaviour, electrochemical promotion on the deactivated catalyst is composed of a reversible and an irreversible part. The reversible promotion results from the steady-state accumulation of current-generated active species at the gas exposed catalyst surface whereas the irreversible effect is due to the progressive reduction of the catalyst resulting in an increased recovery rate of lost catalytic activity. The results are encouraging with respect to application of rhodium for the catalytic removal of NO from auto-exhaust gases under lean-burn conditions.     

Experimental study of NO reduction over biomass char

Some biomass fuels produce more NO_x than coal on the basis of heating value, giving rise to the necessity and importance of controlling NO_x emission in biomass combustion. The present study investigated the NO reduction over biomass char in a fixed bed quartz reactor in the temperature range of 973–1173 K. The reaction rates of three biomass chars (sawdust, rice husk and corn straw) with NO were compared with Datong bituminous coal char. The results show that the reaction orders of biomass chars for NO are of fractional order and independent of temperature. Biomass chars are more active in reducing NO than coal char. The characteristics of biomass char affect NO conversion. Biomass char formed at high pyrolysis temperature, especially large in particle size, is less active in reducing NO. To some extent, increase of reaction temperature and char loading enhance NO conversion. There exists an optimum bed height for the highest NO conversion. Moreover, NO reduction over biomass char is also enhanced in the presence of CO, O₂ and SO₂.     

NO reduction by hydrocarbons in an oxidizing atmosphere over transition metal-zirconium mixed oxides

Cu-Zr-O catalyst is active and selective in the NO reduction by propene in an oxidizing atmosphere. This is due to the inertness of ZrO₂ in hydrocarbon oxidation and its ability to disperse Cu. Other transition metal-zirconium mixed oxides were also tested for NO reduction by hydrocarbons in an oxidizing atmosphere. When propene is used as a reductant, Cu, Ni and Co supported on zirconia are active and selective catalysts. When propane is used as a reductant NO conversion decreases for all of the catalysts. The decrease is mild for Ni and Co but is very severe for Cu.     

Activity during reduction of NO by CO over bimetallic palladium-rhodium/silica catalysts

A study of the activity of bimetallic Pd-Rh catalysts supported on silica in the reduction of NO by CO is presented. The catalysts were prepared by three different methods: (1) Pd and Rh were coimpregnated on the support, (2) Rh was impregnated first and, after calcining, the sample was impregnated with Pd, (3) the monometallic Pd and Rh catalysts were physically mixed. The results showed that the activity of the catalysts prepared by coimpregnation was much lower than that of the other two catalysts.     

Electrochemical promotion of NO reduction by C2H4 in 10% O2 using a monolithic electropromoted reactor with Rh/YSZ/Pt elements

The reduction of NO by C₂H₄ in high excess of O₂ and temperatures 200−300 °C was investigated using a monolithic electropromoted reactor (MEPR) with twenty-two Rh/YSZ/Pt parallel plate elements. It was found that at 220–240 °C and 10% O₂ the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO can be electropromoted by 450% with near 100% selectivity to N₂ and Λ_NO values up to 2.4. The corresponding rate enhancement ratio of complete C₂H₄ oxidation is up to 900% with Faradaic efficiency, , values up to 350. The system appears promising for practical applications.     

Selective catalytic reduction of NO by propene in excess oxygen on Pt- and Rh-supported alumina catalysts

A comparative study of Pt/alumina and Rh/alumina catalysts was performed for the selective catalytic reduction of NO with C₃H₆ in the presence of excess oxygen. Pt/alumina was more active for NO reduction at lower temperatures compared to Rh/alumina. However, the latter exhibited clearly superior performance in terms of selectivity to N₂. This makes Rh/alumina a more suitable catalyst for the selective catalytic reduction of NO under excess oxygen conditions. Detailed kinetic studies of the SCR of NO were performed on Pt/alumina and Rh/alumina to obtain low-temperature kinetic expressions for NO reduction and C₃H₆ oxidation in the presence and absence of NO. Qualitative similarities yet quantitative differences in these kinetic expressions appear to indicate the existence of two partially similar mechanistic schemes. One is based on the indirect participation of the reductant through reduction of the active sites, followed by dissociative adsorption of NO on reduced sites (applicable for Pt/alumina). The other is based on the direct participation of the reductant (apparently by its partial oxidation) in forming an activated intermediate species, followed by its interaction with activated NO (applicable for Rh/alumina).     

Promoting effects of metals for NO reduction over potassium doped carbon

Reduction of NO to N₂O or N₂ was studied over activated carbons using thermal desorption technique. The addition of other metals such as Zn, Cu, Fe, Ni, Sn, Mn or Ce, to potassium doped carbon remarkably enhanced direct NO reduction or NO reduction by carbon. The high activity might be ascribed to the synergism between potassium-metal on the carbon surface.     

The reduction of NO with H2 over Ru/MgO

Ruthenium supported on magnesia was found to be a highly active and selective catalyst for the reduction of NO to N₂ with H₂. The adsorption of NO on Ru/MgO was studied at room temperature by applying frontal chromatography with a mixture of 2610 ppm NO in He. Subsequently, temperature‐programmed desorption (TPD) and temperature‐programmed surface reaction (TPSR) experiments in H₂ were performed. The adsorption of NO was observed to occur partly dissociatively as indicated by the formation of molecular nitrogen. The TPD spectrum exhibited a minor NO peak at 340 K indicating additional molecular adsorption of NO during the exposure to NO at room temperature, and two N₂ peaks at 480 K and 625 K, respectively. The latter data are in good agreement with previous results with Ru(0001) single‐crystal samples, where the interaction with NH₃ was found to lead to two N₂ thermal desorption states with a maximum coverage of atomic nitrogen of about 0.38. Heating up the catalyst after saturation with NO at room temperature in a H₂ atmosphere revealed the self‐accelerated formation of NH₃ after partial desorption of N₂, whereby sites for reaction with H₂ become available. As a consequence, the observed high selectivity towards N₂ under steady‐state reduction conditions is ascribed to the presence of a saturated N+O coadsorbate layer resulting in an enhanced rate of N₂ desorption from this layer and a very low steady‐state coverage of atomic hydrogen. The formation of H₂O by reduction of adsorbed atomic oxygen is the slow step of the overall reaction which determines the minimum temperature required for full conversion of NO. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Transient and resonant behavior for no reduction by CO over a Pt/Al2O3 catalyst during forced composition cycling

The reduction of NO by CO over a Pt/Al₂O₃ catalyst has been investigated using the technique of forced concentration cycling in an isothermal recycle reactor at 485 K. Time-average conversions exhibit resonant behavior with increasing frequency. Maximum time-average NO conversion of 78%, compared with the steady-state conversion of 3.8%, was attained during out-of-phase feed concentration cycling. The effect of the phase angle between the NO and CO feed cycles has been examined. Higher conversions are obtained by decreasing the NO phase lead below 180°. The convergence to cycle-invariance was slow for high frequency cycling.     

NO reduction by CO over automotive exhaust gas catalysts in the presence of O2

The reduction of NO by CO in absence and presence of O₂ has been investigated by transient experiments at automotive cold-start conditions over Pt/Rh/CeO₂/-Al₂O₃, and derived model catalysts. A high-resolution magnetic sector mass spectrometer was used for distinguishing CO/N₂ and CO₂/N₂O. Mechanistic comparisons are made between the catalyst formulations. A kinetic scheme of elementary reaction steps is proposed, which highlights the various contributions of the catalyst constituents.     

Steady-state multiplicity phenomena during the electrochemical promotion of NO reduction by C2H4 in presence of O2 on thin Rh and Pt catalyst-electrodes in a monolithic electropromoted reactor

The electrochemical promotion of catalysis (EPOC) was used to promote the selective reduction of NO by hydrocarbons in presence of oxygen using thin (40 nm) porous Rh and Pt catalyst layers sputtered on the opposite surfaces of thin (0.25 mm) solid electrolyte (YSZ) plates serving as electrocatalytic elements of a monolithic electrochemically promoted reactor (MEPR). Using 22 Rh/YSZ/Pt type cells it was found that the reduction of NO in presence of 1.1 kPa O₂ and 0.36 kPa C₂H₄ can be efficiently electropromoted with 340% rate enhancement, reaching 95% NO conversion with 100% selectivity to N₂ in the temperature range from 280 to 340 °C. The apparent Faradaic efficiency is larger than unity for both the NO reduction and the C₂H₄ oxidation reaction.At elevated temperatures (≥300 °C) and high reactant conversions it was found that after current interruption, the catalytic rates do not return to their initial values but remain in a new highly active steady state. It appears that this highly active state is not a genuine intrinsic permanent NEMCA state but is manifestation of steady-state multiplicity in the monolithic reactor resulting from near complete gaseous O₂ consumption. Thus the low and high activity steady states corresponding to zero applied potential appear to correspond to high and low average P_O2 in the reactor. The latter is the result of the near complete reactant conversion under the preceding electropromoted operation. These highly active permanent NEMCA states may be quite useful for practical applications.     

H_2O和SO_2对甲烷在金属铁表面还原NO的影响

为考察烟气中H2O和SO2对甲烷在金属铁表面还原NO的影响,采用程序控温电加热水平陶瓷管反应器,在N2气氛和模拟烟气气氛中、300~1100℃下进行了脱硝实验研究,并对反应后铁样品的组成进行了X光衍射(XRD)、场发射扫描电镜(ESEM)和X射线能谱(EDX)分析。结果表明:在N2气氛中H2O及SO2在高温下与NO竞争和金属铁反应,对金属铁还原NO有轻微的抑制作用。在加入甲烷的模拟烟气中,H2O和SO2共存对甲烷在金属铁表面还原NO有一定促进作用。水蒸气在高温下对金属铁的氧化过程中,会生成更多相对疏松的Fe2O3氧化层,有利于NO向内扩散与金属铁反应。加入7%H2O和0.02%SO2的模拟烟气,反应段过量空气系数SR1=0.7和燃烬段过量空气系数SR2=1.2时,在1000℃,有、无H2O及SO2时脱硝效率分别为96.9%和90.6%。     

Catalytic reduction of NO by CO over NiO/CeO2 catalyst in stoichiometric NO/CO and NO/CO/O2 reaction

A new catalyst composed of nickel oxide and cerium oxide was studied with respect to its activity for NO reduction by CO under stoichiometric conditions in the absence as well as the presence of oxygen. Activity measurements of the NO/CO reaction were also conducted over NiO/γ-Al₂O₃, NiO/TiO₂, and NiO/CeO₂ catalysts for comparison purposes. The results showed that the conversion of NO and CO are dependent on the nature of supports, and the catalysts decreased in activity in the order of NiO/CeO₂ > NiO/γ-Al₂O₃ > NiO/TiO₂. Three kinds of CeO₂ were prepared and used as support for NiO. They are the CeO₂ prepared by (i) homogeneous precipitation (HP), (ii) precipitation (PC), and (iii) direct decomposition (DP) method. We found that the NiO/CeO₂(HP) catalyst was the most active, and complete conversion of NO and CO occurred at 210 °C at a space velocity of 120,000 h⁻¹. Based on the results of surface analysis, a reaction model for NO/CO interaction over NiO/CeO₂ has been proposed: (i) CO reduces surface oxygen to create vacant sites; (ii) on the vacant sites, NO dissociates to produce N₂; and (iii) the oxygen originated from NO dissociation is removed by CO.     

Ion-exchanged pillared clays for selective catalytic reduction of NO by ethylene in the presence of oxygen

Ion-exchanged pillared clays (PILCs) were studied as catalysts for selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO by ethylene. Three most important pillared clays, Al₂O₃-PILC (or Al-PILC), ZrO₂-PILC (or Zr-PILC) and TiO₂-PILC (or Ti-PILC), were synthesized. Cation exchanges were performed to prepare the following catalysts: Cu–Ti-PILC, Cu–Al-PILC, Cu–Zr-PILC, Cu–Al–Laponite, Fe–Ti-PILC, Ce–Ti-PILC, Ce–Ti-PILC, Co–Ti-PILC, Ag–Ti-PILC and Ga–Ti-PILC. Cu–Ti-PILC showed the highest activities at temperatures below 370°C, while Cu–Al-PILC was most active at above 370°C, and both catalysts were substantially more active than Cu-ZSM-5. No detectable N₂O was formed by all of these catalysts. H₂O and SO₂ only slightly deactivated the SCR activity of Cu–Ti-PILC, whereas severe deactivation was observed for Cu-ZSM-5. The catalytic activity of Cu–Ti-PILC was found to depend on the method and amount of copper loading. The catalytic activity increased with copper content until it reached 245% ion-exchange. The doping of 0.5 wt% Ce₂O₃ on Cu–Ti-PILC increased the activities from 10% to 30% while 1.0 wt% of Ce₂O₃ decreased the activity of Cu–Ti-PILC due to pore plugging. Cu–Ti-PILC was found to be an excellent catalyst for NO SCR by NH₃, but inactive when CH₄ was used as the reducing agent. Subjecting the Cu–Ti-PILC catalyst to 5% H₂0 and 50 ppm SO₂ at 700°C for 2 h only slightly decreased its activity. TPR results showed that the overexchanged (245%) PILC sample contained Cu²⁺, Cu⁺ and CuO. The TPR temperatures for the Cu–Ti-PILC were substantially lower than that for Cu-ZSM-5, indicating easier redox on the PILC catalyst and hence higher SCR activity.     

Catalytic reduction of N2O with CH4 and C3H6 over Ag–Rh/Al2O3 bimetallic catalyst in the presence of oxygen

A study of nitrous oxide (N₂O) reduction with methane (CH₄) and propene (C₃H₆) in the presence of oxygen (5%) over Ag/Al₂O₃, Rh/Al₂O₃ and Ag–Rh/Al₂O₃ catalysts, with Ag and Rh loadings of 5 wt% and 0.05 wt% respectively, has been performed. From the results, it was observed that the Ag–Rh bimetallic catalyst was the most active for both nitrous oxide removal (more than 95%) and hydrocarbon oxidation. This high activity seems to be connected with a synergistic effect between Ag and Rh. The findings from X‐ray diffraction and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy studies showed also, that there were no strong interactions (eg alloying) between Ag and Rh. Copyright © 2005 Society of Chemical Industry     

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.