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Au/CuSiO3 nanotubes: High-performance robust catalysts for selective oxidation of ethanol to acetaldehyde

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Abstract

Novel gold-supporting silicate nanotubes are synthesized via a hydrothermal method followed by colloid deposition. Their catalytic performance for the selective oxidation of ethanol to acetaldehyde is assessed. The results show that Au/CuSiO3 nanotubes exhibit both high activity and selectivity at high gas hourly space velocity (GHSV). Ethanol conversion can reach up to ~98%, and the selectivity for acetaldehyde is ~93% at 250 °C and ~100,000 mL·gcat–1·h–1. In comparison, the catalytic activity of Au/MgSiO3 nanotubes is relatively low, and ethanol conversion reaches only ~25% at 250 °C. However, when Cu species are added to Au/MgSiO3, the catalytic activity improves significantly, indicating that the interactions between Au nanoparticles and Cu species are responsible for the high performance for selective oxidation of ethanol to acetaldehyde.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry & Collaborative Innovation Center for Nanomaterial Science and Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China

    Xianjun Du, Ninghua Fu, Shaolong Zhang, Chen Chen, Dingsheng Wang & Yadong Li

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  1. Xianjun Du
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  2. Ninghua Fu
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  3. Shaolong Zhang
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  4. Chen Chen
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  5. Dingsheng Wang
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  6. Yadong Li
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Correspondence to Chen Chen.

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Du, X., Fu, N., Zhang, S. et al. Au/CuSiO3 nanotubes: High-performance robust catalysts for selective oxidation of ethanol to acetaldehyde. Nano Res. 9, 2681–2686 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-016-1155-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-016-1155-1

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