Catalytic Performance and Mechanism of (Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu) Transition‐Metal‐Modified CeZrO x Catalysts for Selective Catalytic Oxidation of Methanol

Abstract It is known that methanol used as marine fuel is a promising alternative fuel, which has great potential for greenhouse gas reduction when it originates from renewable energy. However, the escaping methanol and by‐products of the reaction are the upcoming challenges. Selective catalytic oxidation (SCO) of methanol provides better removal of methanol which does not produce any other by‐products, only CO 2 and H 2 O. In this study, a series of (Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu) transition‐metal‐modified CeZrO x catalysts were prepared by coprecipitation method for methanol removal. The as‐prepared CuCeZrO x catalyst could achieve a complete CH 3 OH conversion at 240 °C with zero by‐products (HCHO and CO) generation over the whole temperature range. The physical and chemical properties of CuCeZrO x catalyst were investigated using various characterization techniques to identify the possible responsible for the superior catalytic performance of CuCeZrO x catalyst. Characterization analyses showed that Cu doping significantly increased the ratio of chemisorbed oxygen (O α ) species on the surface, facilitated the formation of Cu 2+ active sites, increased the content of oxygen vacancies and significantly enhanced the redox properties. In situ DRIFTS experiment demonstrated that the major intermediates of methanol oxidation on CuCeZrO x catalyst was formaldehyde, formate, carboxylate. This work could provide new ideas for designing efficient non‐noble‐metal‐based catalysts for methanol removal.