Electron microscopic studies of natural gas oxidation catalyst – Effects of thermally accelerated aging on catalyst microstructure

Abstract Structural changes of PtPd nanoparticles in a natural gas oxidation catalyst were studied at elevated temperatures in air and low-oxygen conditions and in situ using environmental transmission electron microscopy (ETEM). The fresh catalyst shows x particles on the γ-Al 2 O 3 support. At 700 °C, the noble metal oxide decomposes and Pt gets trapped by PdO particles followed by formation of metallic Pd and Pt containing particles. At 1000 °C, the particles had a metallic Pd and Pt containing core surrounded by PdO particles. In addition, the presence of