Preparation, characterization and CO oxidation activity of Cu-Ce-Zr mixed oxide catalysts via facile dry oxalate-precursor synthesis

•Cu-Ce-Zr mixed oxide catalysts prepared via facile dry oxalate-precursor synthesis.•The highly dispersed CuO is the main active site in the CO catalytic oxidation.•The Cu2+ doped into the support facilitates the generation of oxygen vacancies.•CuO content greatly influences the catalytic activity for CO oxidation.•The method is a promising alternative for preparing the CuO-CeO2-ZrO2 catalyst.

CuO-CeO2-ZrO2 catalysts were prepared via facile dry oxalate-precursor synthesis and tested for CO oxidation. The effect of Cu contents was investigated by N2 adsorption, TEM, XRD, XPS, H2-TPR, CO-TPD and Raman techniques. The results show that CuO dispersion, SBET and adsorbed CO amount exhibit a volcano trend with increasing the Cu content. The highest activity was achieved over the catalyst with 18 mol% Cu with the CO conversion being 99% at 85 °C. The superior performance of the catalyst prepared by this method is attributed to the finely dispersed CuO species and the strong interaction of CuO with ceria-zirconia phase.

Graphical abstractThe CO oxidation activity of the CuO-CeO2-ZrO2 catalysts prepared by dry oxalate-precursor synthesis was greatly influenced by CuO content, and significantly higher than that prepared by impregnation method.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide