Density functional theory study of CoAl2O4 (100) catalyst for H2-selective catalytic reduction of nitrogen oxides
摘要
This study systematically investigates the reduction mechanism of CoAl2O4 (100) catalyst in H2-selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NOx using density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The results show that H atoms adsorbed on the three-coordinated oxygen atoms (O3C) of the CoAl2O4 (100) surface exhibit the highest stability, thereby forming Lewis acid sites favorable for NO adsorption. On the CoAl2O4 (100) O3C site pre-adsorbed with H, the dissociation barrier of NO is reduced to 0.43 eV, significantly lower than that on the H-free surface (1.54 eV). The analysis of H2O and N2 formation pathways reveals low adsorption energies, enabling easy desorption of products from the CoAl2O4 (100) surface. The formation and desorption of N2O, a by-product, have high energy barriers, suggesting an extremely low probability of N2O generation in SCR and good selectivity of the catalyst. Moreover, the CoAl2O4 (100) surface shows excellent water tolerance but poor tolerance to sulfur, providing crucial references for future optimization of CoAl2O4 catalysts.