Performance of C2H4 Reductant in Activated-Carbon- Supported MnOx-based SCR Catalyst at Low Temperatures

Abstract

Hydrocarbons as reductants show promising results for replacing NH3 in SCR technology. Therefore, considerable interest exists for developing low-temperature (<200 °C) and environmentally friendly HC-SCR catalysts. Hence, C2H4 was examined as a reductant using activated-carbon-supported MnOx-based catalyst in low-temperature SCR operation. Its sensitivity to Mn concentration and operating temperature was parametrically studied, the results of which showed that the catalyst activity followed the order of 130 °C > 150 °C > 180 °C with an optimized Mn concentration near 3.0 wt.%. However, rapid deactivation of catalytic activity also occurred when using C2H4 as the reductant. The mechanism of deactivation was explored and is discussed herein in which deactivation is attributed to two factors. The manganese oxide was reduced to Mn3O4 during reaction testing, which contained relatively low activity compared to Mn2O3. Also, increased crystallinity of the reduced manganese and the formation of carbon black occurred during SCR reaction testing, and these constituents on the catalyst’s surface blocked pores and active sites from participating in catalytic activity.