Catalytic performance of highly dispersed WO3 loaded on CeO2 in the selective catalytic reduction of NO by NH3

The influence of tungsten trioxide (WO3) loading on the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of nitric oxide (NO) by ammonia (NH3) over WO3/cerium dioxide (CeO2) was investigated. The NO conversion first rose and then declined with increasing WO3 loading. It was found that the crystalline WO3 in the 1.6WO(3)/CeO2 sample could be removed in 25 wt% ammonium hydroxide at 70 degrees C, which improved the catalytic activity of the sample. The obtained samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, hydrogen (H-2) temperature programmed reduction, NH3 temperature programmed desorption, and in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy. The results revealed that the dispersed WO3 promoted the catalytic activity of WO3/CeO2 while the crystalline WO3 inhibited catalytic activity. The oxygen activation of CeO2 was inhibited by the coverage of WO3, which weakened NO oxidation and adsorption of nitrate species over WO3/CeO2. In addition, the NH3 adsorption performance on CeO2 was improved by modification with WO3. NH3 was the most stable adsorbed species under NH3 SCR reaction conditions. In situ DRIFT spectra suggested that the NH3 SCR reaction proceeded via the Eley-Rideal mechanism over WO3/CeO. Thus, when the loading of WO3 was close to the dispersion capacity, the effects of NH3 adsorption and activation were maximized to promote the reaction via the Eley-Rideal route. (C) 2017, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.