Heterogeneous catalysis plays an
important role in many chemical
reactions, especially those applied in industrial processes, and therefore, its theoretical
foundations are introduced not only to students majoring in chemical
engineering or catalysis but also as part of general chemistry courses.
The consideration of catalytic activity of various solids and mechanisms
of catalytic reactions requires the introduction of the concept of
an active site, which together with the catalyst specific surface
area are discussed as key parameters controlling the reaction rate.
There are many known demonstrations of heterogeneous catalysis phenomena
that can be performed live in a lecture hall, but all of them focus
only on the general idea of catalytic processes and are not suitable
for quantitative analysis. Therefore, herein we present a simple demonstration
of the influence of the specific surface area of a catalyst on the
rate of a catalytic reaction. This demonstration is based on a model
reaction of hydrogen peroxide decomposition catalyzed by cobalt spinel
(Co3O4) calcined at various temperatures. The
differences in reaction rates can be monitored visually, and the obtained
data can be used directly for a simple kinetic analysis, including
comparison of numerical values of the reaction rate constants.