Enhancement of the Generation and Transfer of Active Oxygen in Ni/CeO2 Catalysts for Soot Combustion by Controlling the Ni–Ceria Contact and the Three-Dimensional Structure

The effect of the three-dimensionally ordered macroporous (3DOM) structure and the Ni doping of CeO2 on the physicochemical properties and catalytic activity for soot combustion was studied. Moreover, the way in which Ni is introduced to the ceria support was also investigated. For this, CeO2 supports were synthesized with uncontrolled (Ref) and 3DOM-structured morphology, and their respective Ni/CeO2 catalysts were prepared by impregnation of the previously synthesized supports or by successive impregnation of both precursors (Ni and Ce) on the 3DOM template. Conclusions reached in this study are: (1) the 3DOM structure increases the surface area of the catalysts and improves the catalyst-soot contact. (2) The doping of CeO2 with Ni improves the catalytic activity because the NiO participates in the catalytic oxidation of NO to NO2, and also favors the production of active oxygen and the catalyst oxygen storage capacity. (3) Ni incorporation method affects its physicochemical and catalytic properties. By introducing Ni by successive infiltration in the solid template, the CeO2 crystal size is reduced, Ni dispersion is improved, and the catalyst reducibility is increased. All of these characteristics make the catalyst synthesized by successive infiltration to have higher catalytic activity for soot combustion than the Ni-impregnated CeO2 catalyst.