Influence of the reaction conditions on the electrochemical promotion by potassium for the selective catalytic reduction of N2O by C3H6 on platinum

In this work, we have investigated for the first time the selective catalytic reduction of N2O by C3H6 over an electrochemical catalyst (Pt/K-βAl2O3). It was evaluated the influence of the reaction conditions (temperature, oxygen concentration, water vapour presence and time on stream treatment under reaction conditions) on the catalytic performance of the electrochemical catalyst. Electrochemical pumping of potassium ions to the Pt catalyst working electrode strongly increased the N2O reduction rate, activating the catalyst at lower temperatures. However, it was found that the efficiency of the electrochemical promotion decreased as the oxygen concentration increased because of a strong inhibition of propene adsorption and a relative increase of the oxygen coverage. On the contrary, the presence of potassium ions on the Pt catalyst strongly decreased the inhibiting effect of water vapour, increasing the catalytic activity of the catalyst. In addition, the catalyst stability was confirmed by a deactivation study. It was found that a long term treatment at high temperature under operating conditions had a positive effect on the efficiency of the Pt/K-βAl2O3 electrochemical catalyst.