Exploring the Impact of Oxygen Vacances in Co/Pr‐CeO2 Catalysts on H2 Production via the Water‐Gas Shift Reaction

Abstract In this study, we utilized various Pr‐doped CeO 2 catalysts (Pr=5, 10, 20, and 30 wt.%) as a support medium for the dispersion of cobalt (Co) nanoparticles, aiming to investigate the impact of oxygen vacancies on the water‐gas shift (WGS) reaction. Different characterization techniques were employed to understand the insights into the structure‐activity relationship governing the performance of Pr doped ceria supported Co catalysts towards WGS reaction. Our findings reveal that Co/Pr‐CeO 2 catalysts at optimum Pr loading (10 wt.%) exhibit a superior CO conversion (88 %) facilitated by the presence of more oxygen vacancies induced by Pr doping into the CeO 2 lattice, as opposed to the performance of the pure Co/CeO 2 catalytic system. It was also found that the highest activity was obtained at increased intrinsic oxygen vacancies and strong synergy between Co and Pr/CeO 2 support, fostering more favorable CO activation at the interfacial sites, thus accounting for the observed enhanced activity.