Precise Cu Localization‐Dependent Catalytic Degradation of Organic Pollutants in Water

Abstract

Two different synthetic strategies have been employed, wet‐impregnation vs. pre‐incorporation, to control the localization of Cu from interior to external surface of α‐MnO2 octahedral molecular sieves (OMS‐2). CuOx/OMS‐2 exhibits dispersed granular CuOx (x=1 or 0.5) attached and located at the external surface of OMS‐2, whereas Cu‐OMS‐2 shows Cu location within OMS‐2. These results indicate that the catalyst CuOx/OMS‐2 is significantly more active than Cu‐OMS‐2 and OMS‐2 itself in the degradation of organic pollutants. In addition, the catalyst CuOx/OMS‐2 has been successfully reused 10 times without significant decrease in catalytic activity. This work highlights the role of the catalyst location in molecular sieve on the catalytic efficiency of the metal and rationalizes the catalyst optimization in nanocatalyst engineering.