Mechanistic understanding of oxygen spillover enables efficient propane combustion over Pt/AlSOx catalyst

Understanding of the mechanism of saturated alkanes catalytic combustion is crucial for the petrochemical industrial exhaust elimination. Noble metals are commonly proposed to be the active sites for C–H bond activation of saturated alkanes, whereas the critical role of support is largely underestimated. Herein, we reveals a novel pathway for propane activation and combustion on acidic support of Pt catalyst, driven by oxygen spillover, which differs significantly from previously reported reaction mechanisms. Specifically, the Pt/AlSO x -I catalyst was prepared by pyrolyzing the Al 2 (SO 4 ) 3 sol–gel to obtain the acidic micro-mesoporous AlSO x support, followed by loading the Pt active sites using wetness impregnation. In comparison to Pt catalysts supported by Al 2 O 3 nanoparticles (10 nm) or commercially available common γ-Al 2 O 3 , the Pt/AlSO x -I catalyst demonstrates superior catalytic activity for propane combustion. It is found that gaseous oxygen species activated on Pt active sites spillovers to acidic support of Pt/AlSO x -I and then drives propane to activation and further oxidation on acidic support, thereby remarkably decreasing the apparent activation energies (Ea) from 112.4 to 72.0 kJ·mol −1 . Kinetic results suggest that the negative effect of oxygen competitive adsorption is weakened because propane can be activated on the acidic AlSO x support. Additionally, high proportion of metallic Pt species benefits to gaseous oxygen activation as observed on Pt/AlSO x -R, leading to the further increased catalytic activity with highest specific mass reaction rate of 170.2 μmol g Pt −1  s −1  and TOF Pt  of 0.289 s −1  at 220 °C. Our primary results provide novel insights into revealing the reaction mechanism of saturated alkanes combustion on dual active sites.