Mesoporous CuO nanostructures for low-temperature CO oxidation

Preparation of CuO nanostructure was reported by oxalic acid-assisted wet-chemical method in aqueous medium. As-prepared sample was identified as C2CuO4·nH2O, which was further transformed into CuO after heat treatment. To enhance the textural property, CTAB was employed as soft-templating agent. DTA–TGA characterization was performed to investigate the thermal stability of as-prepared C2CuO4·nH2O sample, whereas Raman and XPS measurements confirmed the presence of CuO. FESEM and TEM studies revealed porous architecture with shelled interior for CuO sample. The formation of porous network could be demonstrated by oxidative decomposition of C2CuO4·nH2O due to high temperature calcination. The BET surface area and pore volume were found to be 51 m2 g−1 and 0.4492 cc g−1, respectively. The catalytic activity of sample was investigated for CO oxidation and achived T50 and T100 at 133 and 175°C, respectively, which were further compared with commercialized CuO sample and previously reported data.