Preparation Method of Co₃O₄ Nanoparticles Using Ordered Mesoporous Carbons as a Template and Their Application for Fischer–Tropsch Synthesis

Co₃O₄ nanoparticles (NPs) with a narrow particle size distribution were fabricated via a facile and novel method using mesoporous carbon materials (CMK-3, MSU-F-C) as sacrificial templates. The particle size distribution of the Co₃O₄ NPs varied depending on the pore size of the templates. Synthesis of the NPs with concurrent complete removal of the templates was achieved at 593 K, which is lower than the temperatures utilized in previous reports. It was verified that the carbon template was decomposed by catalytic oxidation with cobalt and NO_<i>x</i> species generated by thermal decomposition of the cobalt nitrate precursor in air. The prepared NPs, and particularly the Co₃O₄ NPs synthesized from CMK-3, acted as excellent catalysts for the Fischer–Tropsch synthesis (FTS). The high catalytic performance was associated with the optimum particle size (6–10 nm) of the nanoparticles for FTS and enhanced reducibility