Preferential oxidation of CO in H2 stream on Au/TiO₂ Catalysts: Effect of preparation method

A series of Au/TiO₂ catalysts were prepared by either photodeposition or deposition-precipitation methods. The catalysts were characterized by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The catalytic performance of these catalysts was investigated by preferential oxidation of carbon monoxide in a hydrogen stream. A high gold dispersion and narrow size distribution was obtained for Au/TiO₂ catalysts prepared by both photodeposition or deposition-precipitation methods. The photodeposition method facilitates the preparation of gold particles as small as 1.5 nm on the support, whereas in the deposition-precipitation method, the gold particles were found to be around 2-3 nm. The catalyst prepared by the photodeposition method showed higher CO conversion and CO selectivity than those prepared by the deposition- precipitation method. The selectivity of CO reacting with O₂ decreased with increasing reaction temperature due to H₂ competing with CO at high temperatures. Au/TiO₂ catalysts prepared by the photodeposition method showed relatively higher CO selectivity below 65 °C when compared with the deposition-precipitation method. The differences in activity could be attributed to the difference in chemical state of gold particles and the particle size of gold. The catalyst prepared by photodeposition had a smaller particle size (1.5 nm). It had higher CO conversion at low temperature (<50 °C). However, the CO conversion and CO selectivity is low between 50 and 100 °C.