In situ oxidation for stabilization of Fe/MCM-41 catalyst prepared by metal organic chemical vapor deposition

Oxygen has been found to be a key factor in the process of metal organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD) to stabilize the iron catalyst supported on MCM-41, particularly in the acidic aqueous reaction. Such stabilization is achieved by in situ oxidation of iron, which intercalates oxygen atoms into the framework of both siliceous and ferric oxides by developing Fe–O–Si and Fe–O–Fe bonds, respectively. This stable Fe/MCM-41 catalyst shows an excellent mineralization efficiency of orange II of ∼85% and an extremely low iron leaching concentration of ∼0.17 mg/L. The catalyst maintains its excellent catalytic activity after multiple reaction runs under acidic aqueous medium.