Ce‐Pr co‐doped Co3O4 with enriched oxygen vacancies for the efficient decomposition of N2O

Abstract

Nitrous oxide (N2O) has gained increasing attention as a non‐carbon dioxide greenhouse gas, and catalytic decomposition is an effective method for mitigating its emissions. In this study, Ce‐Pr co‐doped Co3O4 was synthesised via a coprecipitation method and used for the catalytic decomposition of N2O. The experimental results revealed that the N2O decomposition achieved 100% conversion at 400 °C on the catalyst with a Pr/Ce/Co molar ratio of 0.02:0.2:1, exhibiting an 80 °C decrease of T100 compared with that of Co3O4. The introduction of Ce reduced the size and crystallisation of Co3O4 particles, increased the activity of the lattice oxygen of Co3O4, and facilitated the formation of oxygen vacancies, thereby enhancing the activation of N2O. However, the introduction of Ce inhibited the crystallisation of Co3O4 and the surface coverage of CeO2 decreased the exposure degree of N2O molecules to the Co3O4 surface. Co‐doping strategy of Ce‐Pr was performed to alleviate the negative effects of ceria. Consequently, the incorporation of Ce and Pr species enhanced the redox properties of Co3O4, leading to remarkable catalytic performance of N2O decomposition. This study elucidated the interaction between Ce and Pr dopants and Co3O4, and encouraged more attention on designing novel catalysts for N2O mitigation.