An investigation of CuO/Fe2O3 catalysts for the gas-phase oxidation of ethanol

The catalytic oxidation of ethanol vapor over CuO/Fe2O3 catalysts was investigated. The catalysts were prepared by two different methods: (1) thermal decomposition and (2) flame-aerosol methods. The effects of the catalyst synthesis method and CuO loading on catalyst properties and performance were assessed. The Cu/Fe mass ratio in the catalysts varied from 0 to 0.05 for both synthesis methods used in this study. Catalysts containing a Cu/Fe mass ratio = 1 and pure CuO were also prepared using the thermal decomposition method. The catalysts were characterized for physical and chemical properties via XRD, SEM, TEM, BET surface area analyses, Raman spectroscopy, and TPR. The catalytic activity for the gas-phase oxidation of ethanol was investigated at temperatures ranging from 100 °C to 300 °C. Our experimental results show that the flame synthesized catalysts have higher catalytic activity than thermal decomposition catalysts of similar compositions. The probable reasons for higher activity in the flame-aerosol catalysts are higher surface area and morphological differences.