Chemisorption studies of Pt/SnO2 catalysts

Abstract

The low temperature CO oxidation catalysts that are being developed and tested at NASA-Langley are fairly unique in their ability to efficiently oxidize CO at low temperatures (approx. 303 K). The bulk of the reaction data that has been collected in the laboratory has been determined using plug flow reactors with a low mass of Pt/SnO2/SiO2 catalyst (approx. 0.1 g) and a modest flow rate (5 to 10 sc sm). The researchers have previously characterized the surface solely in terms of N2 BET surface areas. These surface areas have not been that indicative of reaction rate. Indeed, some of the formulations with high BET surface area have yielded lower reaction rates than those with lower BET surface areas. As a result researchers began a program of determining the chemisorption of the various species involved in the reaction; CO, O2 and CO2. Such a determination of will lead to a better understanding of the mechanism and overall kinetics of the reaction. The pulsed-reactor technique, initially described by Freel, is used to determine the amount of a particular molecule that is adsorbed on the catalyst. Since there is some reaction of CO with the surface to produce CO2, the pulsed reactor had to be coupled with a gas chromatograph in order to distinguish between the loss of CO that is due to adsorption by the surface and the loss that is due to reaction with the surface