Cerium doped copper/ZSM-5 catalysts used for the selective catalytic reduction of nitrogen oxide with ammonia

The CuCe/ZSM-5 catalysts with different cerium loadings (0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5 and 2.0 wt.%) was investigated to evaluate the correlation between structural characteristics and catalytic performance for the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO by NH3. It was found that the addition of cerium increased copper dispersion and prevented its crystallization. According to the results of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and temperature-programmed reduction by hydrogen (H2-TPR), copper species were enriched on the ZSM-5 grain surfaces and part of copper ions was incorporated into the cerium lattice. Addition of cerium improved the redox properties of the CuCe/ZSM-5 catalysts, owing to the higher valence of copper and mobility of lattice oxygen than those of Cu/ZSM-5 catalyst. Hence the introduction of cerium in Cu/ZSM-5 improved significantly NO conversion. On the one hand, the cerium introduction into Cu-Z enhances their low-temperature activities. 95% NO conversion is reached around 197 °C for Cu-Z while the corresponding temperature value decreases to 148 °C for CuCe4-Z. On the other hand, the temperature range of efficient NO reduction (95%) also extends to higher temperature when the cerium are added to Cu/ZSM-5. Among the Cu-Ce/ZSM-5 catalysts tested, the CuCe4-Z sample exhibits the highest catalytic activity with the temperature range for 90% NO removal of 148–427 °C.