The effect of CuO modification for a TiO2 nanotube confined CeO2 catalyst on the catalytic combustion of butane

A modified confined catalyst with CeO on the interior and CuO on the exterior surface of TiO nanotubes (Ce-in-TNT-Cu-out) was prepared and investigated for the combustion of butane catalytically. Compared with the Ce-in-TNT and TNT-Cu-out, the Ce-in-TNT-Cu-out presents a higher activity for butane oxidation, with a conversion of 10% at 200°C and a conversion of 90%) at 300°C. XPS analysis indicates that more Ce(IV) and Cu(I) components exist in the Ce-in-TNT-Cu-out catalyst. It is proposed that electron transfer ability between encapsulated CeO and loaded CuO is significantly enhanced by the confinement effect of the TiO nanotubes, facilitating the formation and migration of active oxygen species in the catalyst. This result shows that modulating the electronic property of the active component can further improve the catalytic combustion performance of the confined catalysts.