Photocatalytic oxidation desulfurization of model diesel over phthalocyanine/La0.8Ce0.2NiO3.

A series highly efficient and stable metallophthalocyanine/La 0.8 Ce 0.2 NiO 3 (ML/LCNO) photocatalysts were prepared by a facile sol–gel and immersion method. The as-prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), TEM, N 2 adsorption–desorption, and UV–Vis. The results revealed that LCNO calcined at 700 °C possessed a perovskite structure with porous, and phthalocyanine not only adsorbed on the surface but also loaded in the pores of the LCNO oxide. The photocatalytic activities of the samples were evaluated by the photocatalytic oxidation of dibenzothiophene (DBT) under simulated sunlight irradiation. It was found that either macrocyclic structure or center metal of phthalocyanine had great influences on the photocatalytic activity of ML/LCNO. The oxidative reactivity of the different macrocycles was found in the order of MPc/LCNO > MTAP/LCNO > MPTpz/LCNO; which of different center metals was CoL/LCNO > FeL/LCNO > MnL/LCNO > NiL/LCNO > CuL/LCNO. The catalysts were reused several times with a slight decrease in activity. Furthermore, this kinetics of photocatalytic oxidation of DBT indicated that the reaction was a pseudo-first-order reaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]