An activated carbon （AC） supported Pd catalyst was used to develop a highly efficient in situ adsorption-catalysis system for the removal of low concentrations of o-xylene. In this study, three kinds of Pd/AC catalysts were prepared and tested to investigate the synergistic efficiency between adsorption and catalysis for o-xylene removal. The Pd/AC catalyst was first used as an adsorbent to concentrate dilute o-xylene at low temperature. After saturated adsorption, the adsorbed o-xylene was oxidized to CO2 and H20 by raising the temperature of the catalyst bed. The results showed that more than 99% of the adsorbed o-xylene was completely oxidized to CO2 over a 5% Pd/AC catalyst at 140℃. Brunauer-Emmett-Teller （BET） analysis, scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, temperatureprogrammed desorption （TPD）, and temperature-programmed oxidation （TPO） were applied to investigate the physical properties of o-xylene adsorption-desorption and the in situ adsorption-catalysis activity of the AC support and Pd/AC catalyst. A synergistic relationship between the AC support and the active Pd species for the removal of low concentrations of o-xylene was established.
HUANG Shaoyong, ZHANG Changbin, HE Hong Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China.
