High performance iridium loaded on natural halloysite nanotubes for CO-SCR reaction

[Display omitted] •Ir/HNT owns high NO conversion in excess oxygen when SO2 and H2O co-existed.•The percent of Ir0 was vital for CO-SCR activity.•SO2 enhanced NO conversion stability by resisting the reaction between CO and O2.•CO and NO prefer to adsorb on the top and hcp sites of Ir(111) respectively.•Ir atoms served as a charge transfer bridge from CO to NO. Iridium nanocatalysts are ideal candidates for the selective catalytic reduction of NOx by CO (CO-SCR) in excess oxygen. Here, a high-performance Ir nanocatalyst supported on natural halloysite nanotubes (HNTs) was applied for the CO-SCR. The HNTs loaded with only 0.5 wt% Ir achieved 78 % NOx conversion at 250 °C in the presence of 5 % O2, which was the highest among catalysts with varied Ir loadings or reduction temperatures. It also possessed an excellent SO2 and H2O tolerance during longevity tests. An interesting SO2-enhanced CO-SCR long-term stability was observed, which was ascribed to the inhibitory effects of SO2 on the side reaction between CO and O2. The loading amount and the reduction temperature could modulate the size of Ir nanoparticles and the percent of Ir0, which were two key factors determining the CO-SCR activity. DRIFTS characterizations and DFT calculations coherently revealed the favorable adsorption sites of CO (top) and NO (hcp) on Ir nanoparticles. The Ir atoms served as a charge transfer bridge from the C atom of CO to the N atom of NO, leading to the enhanced breakage of N-O bonds. This work provides Ir/HNT as a promising CO-SCR material with high performance and robustness to tackle NOx pollution.