Nanostructured platinum catalyst coating on diesel particulate filter with a low-cost electroless deposition approach

• A cost-effective catalyst coating method was developed on the commercial DPF products.
• Pt nanoparticles were in situ synthesized within DPF microstructures regardless of chemical property of substrates.
• Catalytic performance of nanostructured Pt catalysts was measured and analyzed by a thermal gravity analysis (TGA).

To meet an increasingly stringent regulation in suppression of particulate matter (PM) in exhaust stream, catalytic diesel particulate filter (cDPF) is a promising solution that catalytically converts carbon agglomerate to gaseous emissions, releasing to atmosphere without particular caution. A low-cost electroless coating approach is presented here to realize in situ growth of nanostructured metal crystals inside micropores without the need of electrical contacts and regardless of the substrate’s chemical property. SEM and X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) showed that silver (Ag) precursor gives rise to well-dispersed Pt particles on the multi-walled support with low aggregation and high surface density. Catalytic performance on this metallized filter is quantitatively weighed by thermal gravity analysis (TGA), which exhibits the drastic difference between bare soot and presence of Pt nanoparticles. In addition, the participation of NOx significantly reduced the soot ignition temperature, provided that involving of oxidase gas triggers the distinct pathway of catalytic reaction. Overall, the developed protocol paves a new avenue for chemically embedding nanostructured Pt catalysts in micrometric hollow reactors, producing a large-scale catalytic surfaces for soot combustion and well-balancing the economic and technical needs.