Synthesis of oxygen functionalized carbon nanotubes and their application for selective catalytic reduction of NOx with NH3

Abstract

Oxygen functionalized carbon nanotubes synthesized by surface acid treatment were used to improve the dispersion properties of active materials for catalysis. Carbon nanotubes have gained attention as a support for active materials due to their high specific surface areas (400–700 m2 g−1) and chemical stability. However, the lack of surface functionality causes poor dispersion of active materials on carbon nanotube supports. In this study, oxygen functional groups were prepared on the surface of carbon nanotubes as anchoring sites for decoration with catalytic nanoparticles. The oxygen functional groups were prepared through a chemical acid treatment using sulfuric acid and nitric acid, and the amount of functional groups was controlled by the reaction time. Vanadium, tungsten, and titanium oxides as catalytic materials were dispersed using an impregnation method on the synthesized carbon nanotube surfaces. Due to the high density of oxygen functional groups, the catalytic nanoparticles were well dispersed and reduced in size on the surface of the carbon nanotube supports. The selective catalytic reduction catalyst with the oxygen functionalized carbon nanotube support exhibited enhanced NOx removal efficiency of over 90% at 350–380 °C which is the general operating temperature range of catalysis in power plants.