EFFECTS OF SUBSTITUTION IN PEROVSKITES LA2-XSRXNIO4-LAMBDA ON THEIR CATALYTIC ACTION FOR THE NITRIC-OXIDE + CARBON-MONOXIDE REACTION

The catalytic activity of the perovskite series La2-xSrxNiO4-lambda (x = 0.00, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, 1.00, 1.25 and 1.50) has been studied for the reduction of nitric oxide by carbon monoxide in equimolecular mixture. The conversion (X%) of reactants approaches the value X(NO)/X(CO) = 2 at low temperatures and low degree of substitution of lanthanum by strontium but tends to unity at high temperatures and high degree of substitution. This behaviour is due to the change of the rate determining step of the reaction which at low temperature is the oxygen formation through decomposition of nitric oxide while at high temperatures it is the reaction between the adsorbed oxygen species and carbon monoxide. The apparent activation energies for the nitric oxide elimination drop with the process of substitution from x = 0.00 to x = 1.00 and increase thereafter. The controlling factor of the catalytic activity of the series seems to be the strength of adsorption of oxygen on the perovskite surface. Thus it is shown that the sum of the enthalpies of the metal-oxygen bonds in the material is closely related to the temperature where reaction switches mechanism. Besides, the differential mean electronegativity of the solids is related both to the reaction rate as well as to the apparent activation energy for nitric oxide reduction.