INFLUENCE OF ORGANIC REDUCING AGENTS ON THE TEXTURAL AND CATALYTIC PROPERTIES OF LaCoO₃

Abstract

This work investigates the influence of soft organic templates on the structural, textural, and catalytic properties of perovskite-type LaCoO₃ catalysts synthesized by the co-precipitation method. D-glucose, D-fructose, and D-galactose were used as organic reducing agents. Precipitation was carried out using sodium hydroxide, after which the obtained precursors were subjected to successive thermal treatment in air at 300 and 750 °C. It was established that after calcination all samples predominantly form the LaCoO₃ perovskite phase with a minor admixture of Co₃O₄. According to nitrogen adsorption and electron microscopy data, the samples are characterized by a mesoporous structure with pore diameters in the range of 13–24 nm. Catalytic tests in the Fischer–Tropsch synthesis showed that the use of soft organic templates promotes an increase in alcohol yield and a decrease in methane and hydrocarbon formation. The highest catalytic efficiency in alcohol synthesis was demonstrated by the LaCoO₃-Gal and LaCoO₃-F samples.