Mesoporous Co3O4-supported gold nanocatalysts: Highly active for the oxidation of carbon monoxide, benzene, toluene, and o-xylene

Three-dimensionally ordered mesoporous Co3O4 (meso-Co3O4) and its supported gold (xAu/meso-Co3O4, x = 3.7–9.0 wt%) nanocatalysts were prepared using the KIT-6-templating and polyvinyl alcohol-protected colloidal deposition methods, respectively. The meso-Co3O4 and xAu/meso-Co3O4 samples exhibited a high surface area of 91–94 m2/g. The Au nanoparticles with a size of 1–5 nm were uniformly deposited inside the mesoporous channels of meso-Co3O4. There were good correlations of oxygen adspecies concentration and low-temperature reducibility with catalytic activity of the sample for CO or BTX (benzene, toluene, and o-xylene) oxidation. Among meso-Co3O4 and xAu/meso-Co3O4, the 6.5Au/meso-Co3O4 sample performed the best, giving the T90% (the temperature required for achieving a CO or BTX conversion of 90%) of −45, 189, 138, and 162 °C for the oxidation of CO, benzene, toluene, and o-xylene, respectively. The apparent activation energies (23 and 45–55 kJ/mol) over 6.5Au/meso-Co3O4 were much lower than those (48 and 72–92 kJ/mol) over bulk Co3O4 for CO and BTX oxidation, respectively. The effects of water vapor, carbon dioxide, and sulfur dioxide on the catalytic activity of the 6.5Au/meso-Co3O4 sample were also examined. It is concluded that the higher surface area and oxygen adspecies concentration, better low-temperature reducibility, and strong interaction between Au and meso-Co3O4 were responsible for the excellent catalytic performance of 6.5Au/meso-Co3O4.