Confinement of subnanometric PdCo bimetallic oxide clusters in zeolites for methane complete oxidation

Supported Pd-based catalysts are widely used for various catalytic transformations, but steam-induced sintering remains a critical issue for industrial application. Here, we report a strategy of encapsulating PdCo bimetallic oxide clusters (0.4–0.6 nm) into sinusoidal channels of MFI zeolite used for methane complete oxidation. The introduction of Co species promotes the activation of surface oxygen species and modulates electronic state of Pd species, effectively enhancing the catalytic performance with the lowest temperature of CH4 complete conversion obtained at 435 °C in the presence of steam. Meanwhile, the PdCo particle size and catalytic activity are remained on [email protected] after 20 h at 420 °C in the presence of steam, much more stable than that of reference catalysts (PdCo/ZSM-5, drop 19% and PdCo/Al2O3, drop 22%). The strategy of confining bimetallic clusters into zeolites to enhance the activity and stability broadens the avenue to designing better catalysts for methane complete oxidation.