Capillary microreactors based on hierarchical SiO2 monoliths incorporating noble metal nanoparticles for the Preferential Oxidation of CO

•Pd/SiO2 and Pt/SiO2 capillary microreactors were designed for the Preferential Oxidation of CO.•Enhanced mass and heat transfer properties and catalytic activity in the microreactors.•Residence time influences selectivity in the microreactors.•Outstanding performance of the microreactors in the CO oxidation in the presence and absence of H2.

Novel hierarchical SiO2 monolithic microreactors loaded with either Pd or Pt nanoparticles have been prepared in fused silica capillaries and tested in the Preferential Oxidation of CO (PrOx) reaction. Pd and Pt nanoparticles were prepared by the reduction by solvent method and the support used was a mesoporous SiO2 monolith prepared by a well-established sol–gel methodology. Comparison of the activity with an equivalent powder catalyst indicated that the microreactors show an enhanced catalytic behavior (both in terms of CO conversion and selectivity) due to the superior mass and heat transfer processes that take place inside the microchannel. TOF values at low CO conversions have been found to be ∼2.5 times higher in the microreactors than in the powder catalyst and the residence time seems to have a noticeable influence over the selectivity of the catalysts designed for this reaction. The Pd and Pt flexible microreactors developed in this work have proven to be effective for the CO oxidation reaction both in the presence and absence of H2, standing out as a very interesting and suitable option for the development of CO purification systems of small dimensions for portable and on-board applications.

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