Superior catalytic performance of Zr-incorporated MnCu/SBA-15 catalyst for low-temperature NH3-SCR of NO: Effect of support

High surface area mesoporous solid support has attracted much interest in the development of cost-effective catalysts for NOx abatement at low temperatures. SBA-15, a high surface area mesoporous material, was employed in the preparation of Al, Ti, and Zr incorporated SBA-15 through a direct synthesis approach under long hydrothermal reaction conditions (100 °C for 72 h). Heteroatom incorporation facilitated change in the morphology and textural properties of the material and was applied as a catalytic supports in order to facilitate the development of a MnCu bimetallic catalyst by a facile conventional co-impregnation method. At temperatures as low as 260 °C, the catalyst that was developed displayed superior deNOx activity for SCR of NO with NH3. There have been various physicochemical studies undertaken on the catalysts that were prepared, such as XRD, XPS, BET, HR-SEM, and HR-TEM. The deNOx optimization and deNOx activity over the catalysts are discussed. The exceptional deNOx activity at low temperatures may be attributed to the rod-like morphology, extensive oxygen vacancies, and high ratio of Mn3+ + Mn4+/Mn on 10Mn4Cu/Zr-SBA-15 catalyst. Furthermore, the catalyst also displayed a synergetic interaction between the Mn and the Zr species on its surface, which contributed to the catalyst's superior catalytic recycle ability and its long-term stability on stream stability. A useful approach of preparation is provided in order to accomplish the industrial use of a bimetallic catalyst consisting of manganese and copper at a low cost.