Catalytic oxidation of low concentration ethyl acetate and butyl acetate on cerium–manganese composite metal oxides

Abstract

Herein, Ce–Mn oxide catalysts were obtained by a coprecipitation process and applied to the oxidation of ethyl acetate and butyl acetate. Among a series of catalysts, Ce₁Mn₂ displayed exceptional catalytic performance for ethyl acetate (3933 mg m⁻³, T₉₀ = 157 °C) and butyl acetate (5186 mg m⁻³, T₉₀ = 171 °C) when the GHSV was 15 000 h⁻¹. The properties of these Ce–Mn oxide catalysts were characterized using XRD, BET, SEM, and XPS. It was observed that the solid solution structure formed between Ce and Mn oxides and the specific surface area increased. Ce³⁺ and Mn³⁺ were considered to be key species in the reaction process, with lattice oxygen and adsorbed oxygen playing their parts. A water content of approximately 1.5 wt% promoted the catalytic process. In addition, FT-IR and GC-MS were employed to detect the by-products generated by the reaction, and it was found that aldehydes and alcohols were the main by-products.