The preparation, characterization, and catalytic performance of porous fibrous LaFeO3 perovskite made from a sunflower seed shell template

LaFeO 3 perovskite with a porous fibrous structure was successfully synthesized using a sunflower seed shell as a template. To investigate the effects of this template, a sample was prepared without a template via the same procedure. Through various characterization techniques, such as X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, N 2 adsorption-desorption analysis, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, oxygen temperature programed desorption, and hydrogen temperature programed reduction, the physiochemical properties of the samples were investigated. The results showed that the sample made with a template had a larger surface area and a larger amount of adsorbed oxygen, which further illustrated that the sunflower seed shell template had a significant impact on the physiochemical properties of the samples. Furthermore, we explored the catalytic activity for nitric oxide (NO) oxidation, and studied the factors affecting it, which highlighted its potential application in automobile exhausts.