Carbon materials as catalyst supports for SO2 oxidation: catalytic activity of CuO–AC Original Research Article

Copper catalysts supported on acid treated activated carbon (AC) were prepared, characterized and tested in terms of their SO2 oxidation activity. Reactions of CuO–AC in flow systems with sulfur dioxide, oxygen and nitrogen streams were investigated to determine the types of chemical interactions that occur on the sorbent surface. The effects of reaction temperature, acid treatment, metal loading, support particle size, SO2 concentration and O2 concentration on SO2 oxidation activity were evaluated. It was found that carbon materials used as catalyst supports for copper oxide catalysts provided a high catalytic activity for adsorbing SO2 from flue gas and oxidizing it. Acid pretreatment of the carbon supports increased the content of specific surface chemical groups to enhance the catalytic activity for SO2 oxidation. Metal loading, as well as support particle size, have a significant influence on the SO2 activity. The supported metals rather than surface oxygen functional groups on AC may be the active sites for adsorbing SO2.