An Advance in Complete Oxidation of Formaldehyde at Low Temperatures

Editor＇s comments Formaldehyde （HCHO） emitted from chemical manufacturing plants including methanol-gasoline/diesel fuel vehicles and the construction and decoration materials is one of the major air pollutions, which induces photochemical pollution and hazards human health. Great efforts have been made for the reduction or control of the emission of HCHO to satisfy the stringent environmental regulations. Now, a new study supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China reports mesoporous manganese oxide with novel nanostructures for the decomposition of HCHO. The obtained manganese oxide nanomaterials showed high catalytic activities for oxidative decomposition of HCHO at low temperatures. Complete conversion of HCHO to CO2 and H2O were achieved, and no harmful by- products were detected in effluent gases. The catalytic activities of these nanomaterials are significantly higher than those of previously reported manganese oxide octahedral molecular sieve （OMS-2） nanorods , MnO x powders, and alumnina-supported mangnaese-palladium oxide catalysts. These results provide a new route for the removal of HCHO and other air pollutions.