Performances of CuSO4/TiO2 catalysts in selective catalytic reduction of NOx by NH3

A series of CuSO 4 /TiO 2 catalysts were prepared using a wet impregnation method. The activity of each sample in the selective catalytic reduction of NO by NH 3 (NH 3 -SCR) was determined. The effects of SO 2 and H 2 O, and their combined effect, on the activity were examined at 340 °C for 24 h. The catalysts were characterized using N 2 adsorption-desorption, X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, temperature-programmed reduction of H 2 (H 2 -TPR), temperature-programmed desorption of NH 3 (NH 3 -TPD), and in situ diffuse-reflectance infrared Fourier-transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS). The CuSO 4 /TiO 2 catalysts had good activities, with low production of N 2 O above 340 °C. SO 2 or a combination of SO 2 and H 2 O had little effect on the activity, and H 2 O caused only a slight decrease in activity during the experimental period. The NH 3 -TPD and H 2 -TPR results showed that CuSO 4 increased the amounts of acid sites and adsorbed oxygen on the catalyst. In situ DRIFTS showed that the NH 3 -SCR reaction on the CuSO 4 /TiO 2 catalysts followed an Eley–Rideal mechanism. The reaction of gaseous NO with NH 3 adsorbed on Lewis acid sites to form N 2 and H 2 O could be the main reaction pathway, and oxygen adsorption might favor this process.