A Review of Recent Advances of Dielectric Barrier Discharge Plasma in Catalysis

Abstract

Dielectric barrier discharge plasma is one of the most popular methods to generate nanthermal plasma, which is made up of a host of high-energy electrons, free radicals, chemically active ions and excited species, so it has the property of being prone to chemical reactions. Due to these unique advantages, the plasma technology has been widely used in the catalytic fields. Compared with the conventional method, the heterogeneous catalyst prepared by plasma technology has good dispersion and smaller particle size, and its catalytic activity, selectivity and stability are significantly improved. In addition, the interaction between plasma and catalyst can achieve synergistic effects, so the catalytic effect is further improved. The review mainly introduces the characteristics of dielectric barrier discharge plasma, development trend and its recent advances in catalysis; then, we sum up the advantages of using plasma technology to prepare catalysts. At the same time, the synergistic effect of plasma technology combined with catalyst on methanation, CH4 reforming, NOx decomposition, H2O2 synthesis, Fischer–Tropsch synthesis, volatile organic compounds removal, catalytic sterilization, wastewater treatment and degradation of pesticide residues are discussed. Finally, the properties of plasma in catalytic reaction are summarized, and the application prospect of plasma in the future catalytic field is prospected.