Synergetic enhancement of activity and selectivity for reverse water gas shift reaction on Pt-Re/SiO2 catalysts

Catalytic reduction of CO2 with renewable H2 to CO via the reverse water gas shift (RWGS) reaction is an attractive approach to recycle CO2 and control net emission of CO2 to atmosphere. However, low activity and high CH4 selectivity at low temperatures limited the practical implementation of the reaction. Herein, Pt-Re/SiO2 catalysts with varying amount of Re were prepared with co-impregnation and tested for the RWGS reaction. Characterization results indicated that the oxophilic ReOx (0 ≤ x ≤ 3.5) located in close proximity to Pt particle, modified the surface of Pt by both partial coverage and electronic interaction, resulting in the reduced number of sites for and weakened strength of CO adsorption. At 400 °C, the turnover frequency (2.30 s−1) on the optimal Pt-Re/SiO2 catalyst (Pt/Re = 1.91) is 3.9 times higher than that on Pt/SiO2 under differential conditions, and the apparent activation energy is lowered. In contrast to Re/SiO2 which produces significant amount of CH4, the CO selectivity on Pt-Re/SiO2 maintained > 96.2 % under integral conditions. Reaction order analysis revealed that Pt facilitates H2 activation whereas the oxophilic ReOx enhances CO2 adsorption and activation. The perimeter sites at the Pt/ReOx interface with a balanced hydrogenation and C-O cleavage properties synergistically improve the RWGS activity while inhibiting CH4 production.