Ag–K/MnO2 nanorods as highly efficient catalysts for formaldehyde oxidation at low temperature

Low-temperature thermocatalytic removal of formaldehyde in air using copper manganite spinels

The removal of formaldehyde (FA) is vital for indoor air quality management in light of its carcinogenic propensity and adverse environmental impact. A series of copper manganite spinel structures (e.g., CuMn2O4) are prepared using the sol-gel combustion method and treated with reduction or oxidation pretreatment at 300 °C condition. Accordingly, CuMn2O4-O ("O" suffix for oxidation pre-treatment in air) is identified as the best performer to achieve 100% conversion (XFA) of FA (50 ppm) at 90 °C; its performance, if assessed in terms of reaction kinetic rate (r) at XFA = 10%, is 5.02E-03 mmol g-1 h-1. The FA removal performance increases systematically with decreases in flow rate, FA concentration, and relative humidity (RH) or with increases in bed mass. The reaction pathways and intermediates of FA catalytic oxidation on CuMn2O4-A are studied with density functional theory simulations, temperature-programmed characterization experiments, and in-situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy. The synergistic combination of large quantities of adsorbed oxygen (OA) species and oxidized metal species (e.g., Cu2+) contribute to the enhanced catalytic performance of CuMn2O4-O to oxidize FA into CO2 with the reaction intermediates of H2CO2 (DOM), HCOO-, and CO. The present study is expected to provide valuable insights into the thermocatalytic oxidation of FA over spinel CuMn2O4 materials and their catalytic performances in relation to the key process variables.

Investigation into the roles of interfacial H2O structure in catalytic oxidation of HCHO and CO over CuMnO2 catalysts

The rapid deactivation of cost-effective MnO2-based catalysts in humid air limits their application in practice, and the identification of the role of water in an oxidation process is significant for developing water-resistant MnO2-based catalysts. Here, CuMnO2 showed a 20.3% HCHO conversion in 10 hr at room temperature in humid air with relative humidity of 40%, but deactivated in 3 hr in dry air. The excellent activity and stability of HCHO oxidation in humid air were attributed to the positive effect of H2O on HCHO oxidation to the H2O-HOCH2OH supermolecule assemblies via hydrogen bonds formed on CuMnO2. H2O-HOCH2OH supermolecule assemblies tend to be oxidized to carbonate, which is further oxidized to CO2. Furthermore, CuMnO2 exhibited a much poorer activity of CO oxidation in humid air, but the CO conversion was still 100% in 10 hr in dry air. H2O showed a competitive adsorption effect to CO on CuMnO2. CuMnO2 could be applied in HCHO elimination in humid air and CO elimination in dry air.

Study on the Formaldehyde Oxidation Reaction of Acid-Treated Manganese Dioxide Nanorod Catalysts

Formaldehyde is an important downstream chemical of syngas. Furniture and household products synthesized from formaldehyde will slowly decompose and release formaldehyde again during use, which seriously affects indoor air quality. In order to solve the indoor formaldehyde pollution problem, this paper took the catalytic oxidation of formaldehyde as the research object; prepared a series of low-cost, acid-treated manganese dioxide nanorod catalysts; and investigated the effect of the acid-treatment conditions on the catalysts’ activity. It was found that the MnNR-0.3ac-6h catalyst with 0.3 mol/L sulfuric acid for 6 h had the best activity. The conversion rate of formaldehyde reached 98% at 150 °C and 90% at 25 °C at room temperature. During the reaction time of 144 h, the conversion rate of formaldehyde was about 90%, and the catalyst maintained a high activity. It was found that acid treatment could increase the number of oxygen vacancies on the surface of the catalysts and promote the production of reactive oxygen species. The amount of surface reactive oxygen species of the MnNR-0.3ac-6h catalyst was about 13% higher than that of the catalyst without acid treatment.

Effect of preparation method of noble metal supported catalyts on formaldehyde oxidation at room temperature: Gas or liquid phase reduction

Formaldehyde (HCHO) is toxic to the human body and is one of the main threats to the indoor air quality (IAQ). As such, the removal of HCHO is imperative to improving the IAQ, whereby the most useful method to effectively remove HCHO at room temperature is catalytic oxidation. This review discusses catalysts for HCHO room-temperature oxidation, which are categorized according to their preparation methods, i.e., gas-phase reduction and liquid-phase reduction methods. The HCHO oxidation performances, structural features, and reaction mechanisms of the different catalysts are discussed, and directions for future research on catalytic oxidation are reviewed.

Low-temperature oxidative removal of gaseous formaldehyde by an eggshell waste supported silver-manganese dioxide bimetallic catalyst with ultralow noble metal content

Under dark/low temperature (DLT) conditions, the oxidative removal of gaseous formaldehyde (FA) was studied using eggshell waste supported silver (Ag)-manganese dioxide (MnO₂) bimetallic catalysts. To assess the synergistic effects between the two different metals, 0.03%-Ag-(0.5-5%)-MnO₂/Eggshell catalysts were prepared and employed for DLT-oxidation of FA. The steady-state FA oxidation reaction rate (mmol g^-1 h^-1), when measured using 100 ppm FA at 80 °C (gas hourly space velocity (GHSV) of 5308 h^-1), varied as follows: Ag-1.5%-MnO₂/Eggshell-R (9.4) > Ag-3%-MnO₂/Eggshell-R (8.1) > Ag-1.5%-MnO₂/Eggshell (7.5) > Ag-5%-MnO₂/Eggshell-R (7.2) > Ag-1.5%-MnO₂/CaCO₃-R (6.8) > MnO₂-R (6) > Ag-0.5%-MnO₂/Eggshell-R (3.2) > Ag/Eggshell-R (2.6). (Here, 'R' denotes hydrogen-based thermochemical reduction pretreatment.) The temperature required for 90% FA conversion (T₉₀) at the same GHSV exhibited a contrary ordering: Ag/Eggshell-R (175 °C) > Ag-0.5%-MnO₂/Eggshell-R (123 °C) > Ag-5%-MnO₂/Eggshell-R (113 °C) > MnO₂-R (99 °C) > Ag-1.5%-MnO₂/Eggshell (96 °C) > Ag-3%-MnO₂/Eggshell-R (93 °C) > Ag-1.5%-MnO₂/Eggshell-R (77 °C). The eggshell catalyst outperformed the ones made of commercial calcium carbonate due to the presence of defects in the former. The MnO₂ co-catalyst enhances the catalytic activities through the capture and activation of atmospheric oxygen (O₂) with rapid catalytic regeneration. Also, MnO₂ favorably captures the hydrogen of the adsorbed FA molecules to make the oxidation pathway thermodynamically more favorable.

Reduced graphene oxide as an effective promoter to the layered manganese oxide-supported Ag catalysts for the oxidation of ethyl acetate and carbon monoxide

The layered manganese oxide (δ-MnO₂)-supported reduced graphene oxide (rGO)-promoted silver catalysts (xAg- yrGO/δ-MnO₂; x and y are the Ag and rGO contents (wt%), respectively) were prepared via a polyvinyl alcohol-protected reduction route. Physicochemical properties of these materials were determined using the numerous techniques, and their catalytic activities were evaluated for the oxidation of CO and ethyl acetate. It is found that the loading of rGO as an electron transfer promoter could significantly strengthen the metal-support interaction (SMSI) between Ag and δ-MnO₂ and increase specific surface area of the sample, hence improving catalytic performance of the sample. Activity evaluation reveals that 1Ag- 1.0rGO/δ-MnO₂ showed the best catalytic activity and the lowest apparent activation energy (E_a), giving a T_90% of 140 °C and an E_a of 42.7 kJ/mol for CO oxidation, and a T_90% of 160 °C and an E_a of 39.8 kJ/mol for ethyl acetate oxidation at space velocity (SV) = 60,000 mL/(g h). The good performance of 1Ag- 1.0rGO/δ-MnO₂ was associated with its high Mn³⁺/Mn⁴⁺ or O_ads/O_latt molar ratio, good low-temperature reducibility, and strong SMSI between Ag and δ-MnO₂. The in situ DRIFTS characterization demonstrates that the carbonate and acetate species were the main intermediate products in CO and ethyl acetate oxidation over 1Ag- 1.0rGO/δ-MnO₂, respectively. The 1Ag- 1.0rGO/δ-MnO₂ sample was not significantly altered in physicochemical property after 55 h of stability test, but its activity decreased in the presence of water vapor, especially such an effect on ethyl acetate oxidation was more obvious, which was possibly due to the competitive adsorption of water and reactants on the catalyst surface.

Enhancement in catalytic performance of birnessite-type MnO2-supported Pd nanoparticles by the promotional role of reduced graphene oxide for toluene oxidation

The birnessite-type MnO2 (δ-MnO2) supported reduced graphene oxide (rGO)-promoted palladium (xPdyrGO/δ-MnO2) samples were prepared using the polyvinyl alcohol-protected reduction method. Physicochemical properties of the catalysts were determined by means of...

Preparation of Mn-Fe Oxide by a Hydrolysis-Driven Redox Method and Its Application in Formaldehyde Oxidation

Homogeneous distribution of Mn-Fe oxides (xMn1Fe) with different Mn/Fe ratios was synthesized by a hydrolysis-driven redox method, and their catalytic activities in HCHO oxidation were investigated. The results showed that HCHO conversion was significantly improved after doping iron due to the synergistic effect between manganese and iron. The 5Mn1Fe catalyst exhibits excellent catalytic activity, achieving >90% HCHO conversion at 80 °C and nearly 100% conversion at 100 °C. The physicochemical properties of catalysts were characterized by BET, XRD, H2-TPR, O2-TPD, and XPS techniques. Experimental results revealed that the introduction of Fe into MnO x resulted in a large surface area, a high ratio of Mn4+, abundant lattice oxygen species and oxygen vacancy, and uniform distribution of Mn and Fe, thus facilitating the oxidation of HCHO to CO2 and H2O.