A kinetic model of the hydrogen assisted selective catalytic reduction of NO with ammonia over Ag/Al2O3

A global kinetic model which describes H₂‐assisted NH₃‐SCR over an Ag/Al₂O₃ monolith catalyst has been developed. The intention is that the model can be applied for dosing NH₃ and H₂ to an Ag/Al₂O₃ catalyst in a real automotive application as well as contribute to an increased understanding of the reaction mechanism for NH₃‐SCR. Therefore, the model needs to be simple and accurately predict the conversion of NO_x. The reduction of NO is described by a global reaction, with a molar stoichiometry between NO, NH₃ and H₂ of 1:1:2. Further reactions included in the model are the oxidation of NH₃ to N₂ and NO, oxidation of H₂, and the adsorption and desorption of NH₃. The model was fitted to the results of an NH₃‐TPD experiment, an NH₃ oxidation experiment, and a series of H₂‐assisted NH₃‐SCR steady‐state experiments. The model predicts the conversion of NO_x well even during transient experiments. © 2013 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 59: 4325–4333, 2013     

A combination of Ag/alumina and Ag modified ZSM-5 to remove NOx and CO during lean conditions

Single and bi-metallic silver modified ZSM-5 catalysts were synthesized using different methods of preparation, characterized by several techniques and tested in simulated diesel conditions. Additionally the catalytic behaviour of the most active catalyst, containing 5 wt.% Ag and prepared by impregnation (5Ag(Imp)-H-ZSM-5), was studied over a broad temperature range with two reducing agents (octane and propene). To correlate the catalytic activity of the prepared catalysts with preparation parameters the materials were characterized by XRD, SEM, N₂-physisorption, octane/propene-TPD, EPR and ICP techniques. A dual bed system consisting of Ag/alumina and the most active zeolitic material (5Ag(Imp)-H-ZSM-5) was shown not only to substantially enhance the activity of Ag/alumina in the low temperature region, but also to completely oxidize the CO and unburned hydrocarbons.     

Hydrogen as a remedy for the detrimental effect of aromatic and cyclic compounds on the HC-SCR over Ag/alumina

The effect of hydrogen on the selective catalytic reduction of NO_x with n-octane, methylcyclohexane and toluene over a 2 wt.% Ag/Al₂O₃ was investigated. Diesel fuels contain, in addition to straight hydrocarbons, varying amounts of cyclic and aromatic compounds, which have a detrimental effect on the Ag/Al₂O₃ catalyst activity. The results showed that the NO to N₂ conversion was significantly promoted, independent of the nature (straight, cyclic or aromatic) of the hydrocarbon, in the presence of 1 vol.% H₂. The role of hydrogen is connected to a faster oxidation of the hydrocarbons and to enhanced formation of amines, which react with activated NO to form N₂.     

HC-SCR of NOx over Ag/alumina: a combination of heterogeneous and homogeneous radical reactions?

Matrix isolation combined with EPR and FT-IR technique at low temperature has been used to study the gas phase species involved in HC-SCR over a highly active Ag/alumina catalyst. A combination of heterogeneous and homogeneous (radical) reactions is proposed to take place over a Ag/alumina catalyst during HC-SCR. Radicals of low molecular weight were trapped in a growing argon matrix behind the Ag/alumina catalyst. In the same matrix, cyanogen isocyanate was detected and is suggested to be a key intermediate for the formation of amines and ammonia via the hydrolysis of isocyanate species.     

Influence of Al2O3 support on the activity of Ag/Al2O3 catalysts for SCR of NO with decane

The role of the Al₂O₃ support on the activity of supported Ag catalyst towards the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO with decane is elucidated. A series of Ag/Al₂O₃ catalysts were prepared by impregnation method and characterized by N₂ pore size distribution, XRD, UV–Vis, in-situ FT-IR and acidity measurement by NH₃ and pyridine adsorption. The catalytic activity differences of Ag/Al₂O₃ are correlated with different properties of Al₂O₃ supports and the active Ag species formed. 4wt% Ag supported on sol-gel prepared Al₂O₃ (Ag/Al₂O₃ (SG), showed higher NO _x conversion (65% at 400 °C), compared with the respective catalysts made from commercial Al₂O₃ (Ag/Al₂O₃ (GB), Ag/Al₂O₃ (ALO), (∼26 and 7% at 400 °C). The higher surface area, acidity and pore size distribution in sol–gel prepared Al₂O₃ (SG) results in higher NO and hydrocarbon conversion. Based on the UV–vis characterization, the activity of NO reduction is correlated to the presence of Ag_n^δ+ clusters and acidity of Al₂O₃ support was found to be one of the important parameter in promoting the formation and stabilization of Ag_n^δ+ clusters. Furthermore from pyridine adsorption results, presence of more number of Bronsted acid sites in Ag/Al₂O₃ (SG) is confirmed, which could also contribute to low temperature hydrocarbon activation and improve NO conversion. In situ FT-IR measurements revealed the higher rate of –CN and –NCO intermediate species formation over 4wt% Ag/Al₂O₃ (SG). We conclude that the physico–chemical properties of Al₂O₃ play a crucial role in NO _x conversion over Ag/Al₂O₃ catalysts. Thus, the activity of the Ag/Al₂O₃ catalyst can be tailored by using a proper type of Al₂O₃ support.     

Effect of SO2 on NOx reduction by ethanol over Ag/Al2O3 catalyst

A new Ag/Al₂O₃ catalyst for removing NO_x in diesel engine exhaust gas was developed. The influence of SO₂ on the reduction of lean NO_x by ethanol over the Ag/Al₂O₃ catalyst was evaluated in simulated diesel exhaust and characterized using TPD, XRD, XPS, SEM and BET measurements. The Ag/Al₂O₃ catalyst was highly active for the reduction of NO_x with ethanol in the presence of SO₂ although the reduction of NO_x is suppressed at lower temperatures. The activity for NO_x reduction is high even on the Ag/Al₂O₃ catalyst exposed to a SO₂ (200 ppm)/O₂ (10%)/H₂O (10%) flow for 20 h at 723 K and comparable to that on the fresh Ag/Al₂O₃ catalyst. No crystallized Ag metal and Ag compounds were formed by the SO₂/O₂/H₂O exposure. On the other hand, crystallized Ag₂SO₄ was easily formed when the Ag/Al₂O₃ catalyst was exposed to a SO₂ (200 ppm)/O₂ (10%)/NO (800 ppm)/H₂O (10%) flow for 10 h at 723 K. XRD, SEM and XPS studies showed that the formation of crystallized Ag₂SO₄ results in growing of Ag particles in larger size and lowering the surface content of Ag particles. In addition, the specific surface area of the Ag/Al₂O₃ catalyst decreases from 221 to 193 m²/g. Although the dispersion of Ag particles was decreased by the formation of Ag₂SO₄, the activity for the reduction of lean NO_x was, remarkably, not affected. This suggests that the Ag–alumina sites created by the Ag₂SO₄ formation are still active for the lean catalytic reduction of NO_x. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Steam effect on NO x reduction over lean NO x trap Pt–BaO/Al2O3 model catalyst

The effect of steam on NO _x reduction over lean NO _x trap (LNT) Pt–Ba/Al₂O₃ and Pt/Al₂O₃ model catalysts was investigated with reaction protocols of rich steady-state followed by lean–rich cyclic operations using CO and C₃H₈ as reductants, respectively. Compared to dry atmosphere, steam promoted NO _x reduction; however, under rich conditions the primary reduction product was NH₃. The results of NO _x reduction and NH₃ selectivity versus temperature, combined with temperature programmed reduction of stored NO _x over Pt–BaO/Al₂O₃ suggest that steam causes NH₃ formation over Pt sites via reduction of NO _x by hydrogen that is generated via water gas shift for CO/steam, or via steam reforming for C₃H₈/steam. During the rich mode of lean–rich cyclic operation with lean–rich duration ratio of 60 /20 s, not only the feed NO, but also the stored NO _x contributed to NH₃ formation. The NH₃ formed under these conditions could be effectively trapped by a downstream bed of Co²⁺ exchanged Beta zeolite. When the cyclic operation was switched into lean mode at T < 450 °C, the trapped ammonia in turn participated in additional NO _x reduction, leading to improved NO _x storage efficiency.     

The effect of hydrogen on the selective catalytic reduction of NO in excess oxygen over Ag/Al2O3

The selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of nitrogen oxides (NO_x) by propane in the presence of H₂ on sol–gel prepared Ag/Al₂O₃ catalysts (0.5–5 wt.% Ag) was investigated. It was confirmed that hydrocarbon-assisted SCR of NO_x is remarkably enhanced by co-feeding hydrogen to a lean exhaust gas mixture (λ>1), attaining considerable activity within a wide temperature window (470–825 K). The samples had marginal activity at 575 K without co-fed H₂, but achieved up to 60% NO_x conversion in the presence of H₂ at a space velocity of 30,000 h⁻¹. NO₂ as NO_x feed component is not converted to N₂ by C₃H₈ to a substantial extent under lean conditions. This points to an activation route of NO through direct conversion to adsorbed nitrite/nitrate or to a dissociation of NO over Ag⁰, formed through short-term reduction by H₂. The nature of Ag species was characterized by X-ray diffraction, temperature-programmed reduction, pulse thermoanalytical measurements, electron microscopy and FTIR spectroscopy. It could be shown that Ag₂O nano-sized clusters are predominantly present on all samples, whereas formation of silver aluminate could not be confirmed. Nano-sized Ag₂O clusters can reversibly be reduced/reoxidized by H₂. A silver loading higher than 2 wt.% leads to a part of Ag₂O particles, which are thermally decomposed during calcination at 800 K or higher. The catalytic role of this metallic silver is still unclear. Formal kinetic analysis of catalytic data revealed that the activation energy of the overall reaction is significantly lowered in the presence of H₂. The presence of water does not change the activation energy. It is concluded that hydrogen reduces the nano-sized Ag₂O clusters to Ag⁰ on a short-term scale. Zero-valent silver promotes a dissociation pathway of NO_x conversion. The fact that more oxidized ad-species (nitrite/nitrate) are observed in the presence of H₂ is attributed to a dissociative activation of gas-phase oxygen on Ag⁰.     

Pd/Al2O3催化剂上CH4选择性还原NO的研究

考察了Pd/Al₂O₃、In/Al₂O₃和Co/Al₂O₃对甲烷选择性还原NO的催化活性。结果表明，采用浸渍法制备的Pd/Al₂O₃、In/Al₂O₃和Co/Al₂O₃三种催化剂，在有氧气氛下，用CH₄作还原剂催化还原NO时，Pd/Al₂O₃催化剂的活性最佳，热稳定性好，在550 ℃，用CH₄选择还原NO，Pd/Al₂O₃催化剂表现出较强的催化能力，NO的转化率达到100%。在高空速实验中，该催化剂亦表现出较高的活性，其活性顺序为Pd/Al₂O₃>In/Al₂O₃>Co/Al₂O₃。实验研究了助催化剂、氧含量以及空速对Pd/Al₂O₃催化剂活性的影响。     

Hydrogen promotes the selective catalytic reduction of NOx by ethanol over Ag/Al2O3

To understand the effect of H₂ on the selective catalytic reduction of NO_x with C₂H₅OH over Ag/Al₂O₃, surface intermediates were examined using in situ DRIFTS spectra, and by-products were identified using GC–MS. Results showed that H₂ addition promoted the partial oxidation of C₂H₅OH to form enolic species, and enhanced the reaction of NCO with NO + O₂ at low temperature. We propose that the enhancement of the enolic species was the main contributor in accelerating NO_x reduction under the presence of H₂ over Ag/Al₂O₃ at low temperatures.     

Selective reduction of NO on Ag/Al2O3 catalysts prepared from boehmite needles

Ag/Al₂O₃ catalysts prepared from boehmite needles (ca. 10 nm×100 nm), which were formed by a hydrolysis of aluminium tri-isopropoxide (AIP), showed good performances for selective catalytic reduction of NO_x compared with the previously reported catalysts [N. Aoyama, K. Yoshida, A. Abe, T. Miyadera, Catal. Lett. 43 (1997) 249], especially when ethanol is employed as a reducing agent in the presence of water. Temperature programmed reduction (TPR) study revealed that the Ag species are attractively interacted with the alumina surface and the oxidized Ag species contribute positively for the improvement of the catalytic activity at the temperatures above 750 K. It is concluded that the boehmite needles as a precursor of alumina support are useful to create the catalytically active sites for NO_x reduction.     

Single‐stage Treatment in Selective Hydrogenation of Acetylene over CDS Type of Pd‐Ag/Al2O3 Catalyst

The (computer designed shape) CDS type of Pd‐Ag/Al₂O₃ catalyst in single‐stage reactor provides superior catalytic activity and selectivity of ethylene in comparison with those of existed two‐stage reactors packed with G‐58B catalyst under industrial operating conditions. In this research, the contents of palladium and silver of catalysts were analyzed by inductive coupling plasma (ICP). The X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) showed that Pd‐Ag alloy has been formed. Higher yield of ethylene may be interpreted by both geometric and electronic effect induced from silver metal. By means of Pyrolysis/GC/MS analysis of used catalysts, the components of carbonaceous deposits were found to be n‐alkenes, including n‐C8 ～ n‐C16 or n‐C18, which may result from oligomerization of acetylene.     

Selective catalytic reduction of NO x over H-ZSM-5 under lean conditions using transient NH3 supply

Topics in Catalysis - The selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO x over zeolite H-ZSM-5 with ammonia was investigated using in situ FTIR spectroscopy and flow reactor measurements. The...     

H2-Induced NO x Adsorption/Desorption over Ag/Al2O3: Transient Experiments and TPD Study

NO adsorption/desorption over 1 wt% Ag/Al₂O₃ was studied by a combination of isothermal transient adsorption/desorption and NO _x temperature-programmed desorption (NO _x -TPD) methods. NO _x -TPD profiles obtained for Ag/Al₂O₃ were identified by comparison with decomposition profiles of “model” AgNO₃/Al₂O₃ and Al(NO₃)₃/Al₂O₃ prepared by impregnation of Al₂O₃ with individual AgNO₃ and Al(NO₃)₃ compounds. The data obtained indicate that H₂-induced NO adsorption leads to the formation of surface Ag and Al-nitrates. Their accumulation on the catalyst surface is accompanied by an intensive NO₂ evolution, which proceeds primarily via reaction of surface nitrates with NO. Thus, NO₂ formation appears to result from an intrinsic stage of the H₂-induced NO _x adsorption process, rather than from the direct oxidation of NO by gaseous oxygen catalyzed by Ag.     

The NO x reduction mechanism by H2 under near isothermal conditions over Pt–Ba/Al2O3 Lean NO x Trap systems

The study of the gas-phase NO reduction by H₂ and of the stability/reactivity of NO _x stored over Pt–Ba/Al₂O₃ Lean NO _x Trap systems allowed to propose the occurrence of a reduction process of the stored nitrates occurring via to a Pt-catalyzed surface reaction which does not involve, as a preliminary step, the thermal decomposition of the adsorbed NO _x species.     

Selective catalytic hydrogenation of naphthalene to tetralin over a Ni-Mo/Al2O3 catalyst

The selective catalytic hydrogenation of naphthalene to high-value tetralin was systematically investigated. A series of Al₂O₃ catalysts containing different active metals (Co, Mo, Ni, W) were prepared by incipient wetness impregnation. The effects of different active metals forms (oxidation, reduction, sulfuration) and reaction conditions on naphthalene hydrogenation were investigated and the catalysts were characterized by XRD, XPS, BET, NH₃-TPD and SEM. Especially, Ni-Mo/Al₂O₃ was first used in this reactive system. The results show that the oxidative 4%NiO-20%MoO₃/Al₂O₃ is the best catalyst for the preparation of tetralin. The conversion of naphthalene and the selectivity of tetralin can reach 95.62% and 99.75% respectively at 200 °C, 8 h and 6 MPa. Compared with reduced and sulfureted 4%NiO-20%MoO₃/Al₂O₃ catalysts, oxidative 4%NiO-20%MoO₃/Al₂O₃ has a well dispersed and uniform monolayer of the active metals, larger pore volume and size, and larger total acidity. NiO-MoO₃/Al₂O₃ has a synergistic effect between NiO activity and MoO₃ selectivity.     

Differences Between Al2O3 and Ag/Al2O3 for Lean Reduction of NO x with Dimethyl Ether

Lean reduction of NO _x with DME occurs with high selectivity to N₂ over Al₂O₃ between 300 °C and 550 °C with a maximum of 47% at 380 °C, and with lower selectivity over Ag/Al₂O₃ between 250 °C and 400 °C due to the catalysts’ sensitivity to gas phase radical reactions and activity for NO _x reduction with methanol.     

Selective catalytic reduction of NO with NH3 over Nb2O5-promoted V2O5/TiO2 catalysts

In contrast to previous claims, the addition of niobia to catalysts containing vanadia supported on titania resulted in much enhanced activity for low-temperature SCR of NO with NH₃ only at low vanadia loadings. Niobia promoted catalysts could also be demonstrated to show higher selectivities to N2, especially at high temperatures and low vanadia loading. This enhancement of the activity cannot be explained only on the basis of the observation that niobia stabilized the surface area of the catalyst: calculations of the activation energy suggest that a different mechanism of the reaction may be at work at low vanadia loadings.     

A Highly Active Ag/Alumina Catalytic Converter for Continuous HC-SCR During Lean-Burn Conditions: From Laboratory to Full-Scale Vehicle Tests

A common-rail diesel vehicle was equipped with a full-scale Ag/alumina catalytic converter. The converter consisted of several Ag/alumina bricks, with free space in between each brick to fulfil important gas phase reactions. An oxidation catalyst was placed at the end of the converter to remove formed CO and unburned HC. High conversion levels of NO _x , around 60%, were recorded at several speeds and loads using additional HC (diesel) injection corresponding to 2–5% fuel penalty.     

制备条件对Cu/Al2O3 选择性催化还原NO的影响研究

考察了制备方法、活性组分负载量和焙烧温度对Cu/Al₂O₃ 选择性催化还原NO的影响。结果表明，采用溶胶-凝胶+浸渍法制备的Cu/Al₂O₃催化剂活性最好；负载Cu质量分数为15%时，催化剂的活性温域最宽，最大活性温度最低，催化活性最好；最佳焙烧温度为750 ℃。