Enhancement of the activity of Cu/TiO2 catalyst by Eu modification for selective catalytic reduction of NOx with NH3.

The Cu/TiO₂ catalysts with the addition of Eu were developed by the sol-gel way for the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO_x by NH₃. Activity tests revealed that CuEu/TiO₂-0.15 catalyst showed the optimal de-NO_x performance in a wide temperature range (150–300 °C), along with an admirable SO₂ tolerance. According to characterization analysis, the relationship between the NH₃-SCR performance and physicochemical characters of samples was explored. The adjunction of Eu on Cu/TiO₂ catalyst can contribute to the formation of a large amount of Cu²⁺, adsorbed oxygen, and acid sites on the catalyst surface. Moreover, the Eu addition on Cu/TiO₂ is favorable to the generation of activated NO_x and NH₃ substances adsorbed on the catalyst surface, which would conduce to the NH₃-SCR process by Langmuir-Hinshelwood (L-H) mechanism effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]