Effect of different support on activity of Mn-Ce binary oxides catalysts for toluene combustion

Abstract The effects of support materials on catalytic performance were investigated in catalytic removal of toluene. And the Mn-Ce binary oxides as active components were supported on ZrO2, SiO2, γ‐Al2O3 and TiO2 support materials. Many techniques, including XRD, BET, XPS, TPR and NH3-TPD, were used to characterize physicochemical properties. Among the different catalysts, the MnCe/ZrO2 catalyst with the lowest surface area (39.7 m2/g) shows the best catalytic activity. In light of toluene conversion, the following activity order is that: MnCe/ZrO2 > MnCe/TiO2 ≈ MnCe/SiO2 > MnCe/Al2O3. The higher performance of MnCe/ZrO2 should be attributed to the low-temperature reducibility, and abundant surface species (Mn4+ and lattice oxygen). And XPS and TPR results reveal that more surface abundant Mn and Ce elements generates good interaction in MnCe/ZrO2. The weak interaction between metal oxide and support also boosts the dispersion and complete reduction of MnCe oxides at low-temperature. In addition, the in-situ DRIFTS results clarify that the carbonate species are main intermediates in MnCe/ZrO2 sample during surface reaction process.