The Effects of M2O3 on Stabilizing Monocopper over the Surface of Cu-ZnO-M2O3 Catalysts for Mathanol Synthesis

The effects of M₃O₃ (M = Al, Sc etc.) in Cu-ZnO-M₂O₃ catalysts on methanol synthesis at low pressure were studied with ESR, XPS and TPR spectroscopy. The results of ESR showed that the generation of monovalent cationic defects was because the valence state and electronic charge on the ZnO lattice lost their balance as M³⁺ doped into ZnO. The induced effect by Sc³⁺ is stronger than that by Al³⁺. The results of XPS and TPR indicated that the amount and stabilization of Cu⁺ on the surface of reduced copper-based catalyst and its catalytic activity were affected by the monovalent cationic defects on the surface of ZnO.