Preferential CO oxidation over Au/ZnO and Au/ZnO–Fe2O3 catalysts prepared by photodeposition

Preferential CO oxidation in a H₂-rich stream was studied over Au/ZnO and Au/ZnO–Fe₂O₃ catalysts prepared by photodeposition under UV–vis light. The high catalytic activities of both Au/ZnO and Au/ZnO–Fe₂O₃ catalysts are presented over a temperature range of 30–130 °C. TEM results revealed that the average particle size of Au over the Au/ZnO and Au/ZnO–Fe₂O₃ catalysts, is in the range of 3–5 nm. Moreover, DR/UV–vis spectra showed that the prepared catalysts contained Au^δ+ and Au⁰ (active sites for the PROX reaction) on the catalyst support. Based on the experiment observations, it can be concluded that the catalysts prepared by a photodeposition exhibited excellent catalytic activity, even when both CO₂ and H₂O were added to the simulated stream.     

Preferential catalytic oxidation of carbon monoxide in presence of hydrogen over bimetallic AuPt supported on zeolite catalysts

A series of AuPt/A zeolite and Pt/A zeolite catalysts prepared by incipient wetness impregnation are investigated for the preferential oxidation (PROX) of carbon monoxide in the presence of hydrogen over the temperature range of 50–310 °C under atmospheric pressure. The results indicate that when a small amount of gold is added to the Pt/A zeolite catalyst, the CO selectivity is improved at low temperatures, and 1% AuPt/A zeolite (at a weight ratio of Au:Pt = 1:2) gives the best performance, which provides a high CO conversion in combination with a high CO selectivity. In more realistic simulated reformate gases containing 10% CO₂ and 10% H₂O, there is not much difference between those in the presence and the absence of CO₂ and H₂O. Transmission electron microscopic and X-ray diffraction studies show that the two metals, Au and Pt, appear to be severely phase separated, which is confirmed by energy dispersive investigations.