A novel high-performance CeO-CuMnO catalyst for toluene degradation.

A series of spinel CuMO (M = Mn, Fe, and Al) was used as the catalyst to investigate the effective degradation of toluene, and then CuMnO with better catalytic activity was selected as the research object to study its activity at different ratios of Cu and Mn. Meanwhile, CeO was introduced to modify CuMn bimetallic oxide to improve its catalytic performance. The structure, morphology, and valence states of surface elements of as-prepared catalysts were characterized by XRD, TEM, SEM, N adsorption-desorption, XPS, and H-TPR. Using toluene as a probe molecule, the catalytic activity of the catalyst was tested and the results showed that the conversion rate of toluene catalyzed by CeO-CuMnO catalyst can reach 90% at 200 °C (T) and 100% at 240 °C (T). The CO yield can also reach 100% at 248 °C. Moreover, the possible catalytic mechanism for toluene by the CeO-CuMnO was briefly explored. The catalytic oxidation of toluene over the oxide follows the Mars-van Krevelen mechanism.