A study of the activity of the Cu-Co-Fe catalyst in oxidation of carbon

The paper addresses the thermal stability of fruit-stone activated carbon impregnated with the Cu-Co-Fe oxide catalyst. The nature and concentration of the oxygen-containing surface groups are determined. The kinetic investigation of the process of oxidation of fruit-stone activated carbon reveals a high catalytic activity of the Cu-Co-Fe oxide catalyst. It is shown that the nitric-acid treatment of fruit-stone activated carbon leads to an increase in the concentration of carboxyl groups which are the binding centers for Cu-Co-Fe oxide system with subsequent formation of the active center for the low-temperature oxidation. This gives rise to a great number of active centers of oxidation in the surface layer of fruit-stone activated carbon, resulting in a decrease of the temperature of the oxidation reaction of activated carbon by almost 100°C.