Nitrous oxide decomposition over Co/SBA-15 catalysts: the influence of metal loading, cobalt precursor, and solvent effect

The influence of cobalt loading (10–50 wt-%Co), cobalt precursor, and solvent on the physico-chemical and catalytic properties of mesoporous Co/SBA-15 catalysts for the N2O decomposition reaction has been investigated. Catalysts were characterised by N2 adsorption, X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and temperature-programmed reduction (TPR). For Co/SBA-15 catalysts prepared from Co(II) nitrate, the dispersion decreased and the extent of cobalt reduction increased with cobalt loading. A maximum N2O conversion was found for the sample with ca. 30 wt-% Co loading. At similar cobalt loading (ca. 30 wt-%), a low dispersion and a stronger cobalt–support interaction leading to the formation of low reducible cobalt silicates was observed for Co/SBA-15 samples prepared from acetate precursors as compared to that derived from cobalt(II) nitrate, as evidenced by TPR. The former catalysts showed a low N2O decomposition activity. Moreover, at every Co loadings, the catalysts prepared in ...