Insight into the structure of supported palladium catalysts during the total oxidation of methane

Abstract

The combination of in situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and on-line catalytic data provided insight into the structure–performance relationship of a flame-made Pd/ZrO₂ catalyst during the total oxidation of methane: upon heating, a sudden reduction accompanied by sintering of the Pd-particles, leads to a significantly lower catalytic activity and a hysteresis during cooling down.