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Microstructural Analysis and Energy‐Filtered TEM Imaging to Investigate the Structure–Activity Relationship in Fischer–Tropsch Catalysts
Author(s) -
Florea Ileana,
Liu Yuefeng,
Ersen Ovidiu,
Meny Christian,
PhamHuu Cuong
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
chemcatchem
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.497
H-Index - 106
eISSN - 1867-3899
pISSN - 1867-3880
DOI - 10.1002/cctc.201300103
Subject(s) - catalysis , materials science , cobalt , fischer–tropsch process , nanoparticle , chemical engineering , dispersion (optics) , microstructure , phase (matter) , characterization (materials science) , nanotechnology , porosity , doping , composite material , chemistry , organic chemistry , metallurgy , optoelectronics , selectivity , physics , optics , engineering
We present herein the application of chemical imaging based on energy‐filtered TEM in 2 D and 3 D modes to determine the distribution of phases in Co/TiO 2 –SiC catalysts used in Fischer–Tropsch synthesis. In combination with more traditional techniques such as high‐resolution TEM imaging, it allowed us to precisely characterize the microstructure and the relative distribution of the three compounds, Co, Si, and Ti, before and after the catalytic reaction. We show that the TiO 2 doping was almost homogenous within the bimodal porous structure of β‐SiC. The characteristics of the cobalt nanoparticles depended on the phase they are in contact with: small nanoparticles are found on TiO 2 and larger nanoparticles close to SiC. Enhancement of the catalytic performance and higher stability were observed for the Co/TiO 2 –SiC catalyst relative to Co/SiC, which was attributed to the better dispersion of cobalt on TiO 2 ‐doped SiC support and to the relatively strong Co–TiO 2 interaction. From a general point of view, this work illustrates that the advanced TEM‐based techniques are unavoidable for the characterization and the optimization of heterogeneous catalysts.