Influence of rare-earth metal doping on the catalytic performance of CuO-CeO2 for the preferential oxidation of CO in excess hydrogen

Doping of different rare-earth metals (Pr, Nd, Y and La) had an evident influence on the catalytic performance of CuO-CeO2 for the preferential oxidation (PROX) of CO in excess hydrogen. As for Pr, the doping enhanced the catalytic activity of CuO-CeO2 for PROX. For example, the CO conversion over the above catalyst for PROX was higher than 99% at 120 °C. Especially, the doping of Pr widened the temperature window by 20 °C over CuO-CeO2 with 99% CO conversion. For Nd, Y, and La, the doping depressed the catalytic activity of CuO-CeO2 for PROX. However, the doping of transition metals markedly improved the selectivity of CuO-CeO2 for PROX.