Effects of copper loading on NH3-SCR and NO oxidation over Cu impregnated CHA zeolite

Cu/CHA catalysts with various Cu loadings (0.5 wt%–6.0 wt%) were synthesized via incipient wetness impregnation. The catalysts were applied to the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO with NH3 and NO oxidation reaction. XRD and N2 adsorption-desorption data showed that CHA structure was maintained with the incorporation of Cu, while specific surface areas decreased with increasing Cu loading. At intermediate Cu loading, 4 wt%, the highest NH3-SCR activity was observed with ∼98% N2 selectivity from 150 °C to 300 °C. Small amounts of water, 2%, slightly increased NO conversion in addition to the remarkable N2O and NO2 reduction at high temperature. Water effects are attributed to the improved Cu ion reducibility and mobility. NO oxidation results provided no relation between NO2 formation and SCR activity. Physicochemical properties, NO conversion, N2 selectivity, and activation energy data showed that impregnated samples’ molecular structure and catalytic activity are comparable to the conventional ion-exchanged (IE) samples’ ones.