Catalytic decomposition of N2O over cobalt based spinel oxides: The role of additives

Catalytic activity at temperature below 400 degrees C for N2O decomposition was investigated over catalysts based on cobalt oxide synthesized by a co-precipitation and impregnation method. The characteristics of the catalysts were assessed by XRD, BET, H-2-TPR, O-2-TPD, and XPS techniques, and the catalytic activity for N2O decomposition was examined in the presence of O-2 and H2O. In general, it was observed that the catalytic activity was enhanced by the increase of surface area and redox ability of the catalyst. In particular, the N2O conversion of K/Co3O4 was notably higher than that of pure Co3O4, while the Co-CeO2 catalyst slightly improved the activity. The K/Co-CeO2 catalyst decomposed 100% of N2O at 375 degrees C reaction temperature without O-2 and H2O in the reaction gas stream, and this value was lowered to 95.7% with the presence of O-2 and H2O. (C) 2017 Published by Elsevier B.V.