Study of catalytic activities of nanostructure copper and cobalt supported ZSM-5 catalysts for conversion of volatile organic compounds

Authors: ALIGHOLI NIAEI, DARIUSH SALARI, SEYED ALI HOSSEINI

Abstract: This paper reports the comparison of the activities of nanostructure Cu-ZSM-5 and Co-ZSM-5 catalysts for conversion of ethyl acetate and toluene and deals with the relationship between activity and structure of catalysts. The catalysts were characterized by ICP-AES, XPS, EDX, XRD, SEM, and TEM techniques. Catalytic studies were carried out under atmospheric pressure and in a temperature range of 200-500 °C. Cu-ZSM-5 catalysts showed better activity than Co-ZSM-5, revealing higher activity of copper cations. The higher activity was ascribed to higher electro-negativity, smaller cation radius, good distribution, and specific coordination of copper cations inside Cu-ZSM-5 catalysts. The activity of catalysts increased with the increase in loading at the range of metal loading (<5 wt %). Ethyl acetate showed higher reactivity than toluene on these catalysts.

Keywords: Catalytic oxidation, volatile organic compound, ethyl acetate, toluene, Cu-ZSM-5, Co-ZSM-5.

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