The elementary steps during oxidative chemisorption of SO2 by a novel composite material consisting of highly disordered benzene tri-carboxylate metal organic framework materials with Cu as central cation and BaCl2 as a second component (Ba/Cu-BTC) and by a conventional BaCO3/Al2O3/Pt based material were investigated. EXAFS analysis on the Cu K-edge in Ba/Cu-BTC indicates the opening of the majority of the Cu-Cu pairs present in the parent Cu-BTC. Compared to Cu-BTC, the BaCl2 loaded material has hardly any micropores and has higher disorder, but it has better accessibility of the Cu2+ cations. This results from the partial destruction of the MOF structure by reaction between BaCl2 and the Cu cations. The SO2 uptake in oxidative atmosphere was higher for the Ba/Cu-BTC sample than for the BaCO3/Al2O3/Pt based material. XRD showed that on Ba/Cu-BTC the formation of BaSO4 and CuSO4 occurs in parallel to the destruction of the crystalline structure. With BaCO3/Al2O3/Pt the disappearance of carbonates was accompanied with the formation of Ba- and Al-sulfates. XANES at the S K-edge was used to determine the oxidation states of sulfur and to differentiate between the sulfate species formed. At low temperatures (473 K) BaSO4 was formed preferentially (53 mol% BaSO4, 47 mol% CuSO4), while at higher temperatures (and higher sulfate loading) CuSO4 was the most abundant species (42 mol% BaSO4, 58 mol% CuSO4). In contrast, on the BaCO3/Al2O3/Pt based material the relative concentration of the sulfate species (i.e., BaSO4 and Al2(SO4)3) as function of the temperature remained constant.

Metal organic framework materials with Cu 2+ as central cation and benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylate (BTC) as linker were prepared via hydrothermal synthesis and impregnated with barium salts (chloride, nitrate, acetate) to explore the role of the Ba 2+ counter ion on the SO 2 uptake. The impregnation of the metal organic framework materials with barium salts led to a decrease of pore volume through the (intra pore) formation of small Ba salt crystals. The structure of the Cu-BTC material was preserved after the impregnation with acetate and nitrate, but partially destroyed during impregnation with chloride. The complete loss of the BTC structure occurred through thermal decomposition at temperatures around 573 K. The sample impregnated with BaCl 2 showed a higher fraction of Cu 2+ species compared to the other Ba/Cu-BTC samples. The SO 2 uptake capacity of the Ba/Cu-BTC(Cl -) sample was the highest at temperatures below 673 K among all materials prepared and even higher compared to BaCO 3 /Al 2 O 3 /Pt based material. The comparison of the theoretical uptake (based on the stoichiometric formation of BaSO 4 ) with the maximum SO x uptake achieved on the Ba/Cu-BTC samples clearly points out that a fraction of the SO x is stored on the Cu species being part of the metal organic framework structure. With increasing temperature the framework is (partially) decomposed and highly dispersed Cu species are released, which act as additional SO x storage sites in the high temperature region.

Cobalt-containing mesoporous materials that have been prepared using different procedures have been comparatively characterized by transmission electron microscopy/energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (TEM/EDS), extended X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy (EXAFS), X-ray absorption near edge spectroscopy (XANES), and ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis), near-infrared (NIR), and mid-infrared (mid-IR) spectroscopies, and the results provide new insights into the local environment and properties of cobalt in this type of material. TEM/EDS analyses have shown that tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) may be less appropriate as a silicon source during the syntheses of cobalt-containing mesoporous materials, because the distribution of cobalt throughout the framework may become uneven. EXAFS has been determined to be the most suitable method for direct verification of framework incorporation, by identifying silicon as the backscatterer in the second shell. Such a direct verification may not be obtained using UV-vis spectroscopy. From EXAFS analyses, it is also possible to distinguish between surface-bound and framework-incorporated cobalt. There is a good agreement between the results obtained from XANES and UV-vis regarding the coordination symmetry of cobalt in the samples. The presence of cobalt in the silica framework has been determined to create Lewis acid sites, and these acid sites are suggested to be located at tetrahedral cobalt sites at the surface.

In situ S K-edge XANES experiments were carried out on second-generation SO(x)() trapping materials under oxidizing and reducing conditions. The experiments clearly show that the strong release of SO(2) under rich conditions at plug flow conditions is caused by the facilitated reduction of sulfite species on Pt. In the absence of Pt the sulfite species were stable under reducing conditions, while maintaining a similar total SO(2) uptake capacity. Thus, SO(x)() trapping materials without a noble metal are a clearly better option. The enhancing effect on the SO(x)() storage process of water present in the gas mixture is attributed to the formation of a higher sulfate fraction in the samples. The application of the in situ S K-edge XANES technique clearly reveals new information and insights on the behavior of the sulfur in the trapping process compared to that from the ex situ measurements and is therefore essential for designing new SO(x)() trapping materials.