Boosting Nitrous Oxide Direct Decomposition Performance Based on Samarium Doping Effects

Abstract A series of Sm-doped Co3O4 catalysts for the N2O direct catalytic decomposition were synthesized by the sol–gel method using citric acid as a chelating agent and urea as a combustion agent. The doping of Sm significantly altered the activity of N2O decomposition on the Co3O4 catalyst. Sm was incorporated into the Co3O4 matrix, leading to the distortion of Co3O4 lattice with the spinel configuration maintained. Sm-doping can effectively promote the oxygen vacancy generation, and the electron interaction between Co and Sm species occurred as the Co3+ + Sm2+ ↔ Co2+ + Sm3+ redox cycle. Combined with in situ Raman and in situ NAP-XPS results proposed that this redox cycle is the main reason that the Sm-doping accelerates the high-efficiency N2O decomposition.