Catalytic oxidation of methane over Pd/Co3O4

The catalytic activity of Pd/Co₃O₄ toward methane oxidation has been examined in this study as a function of Pd loading, reaction temperature, space velocity and methane concentration in the reaction gas mixture. The bare oxide is quite active achieving a 100% methane conversion at 480°C under the reaction conditions used. The catalyst with the highest Pd loading tested of 10 wt.% yields the best activity curve, but the 5 wt.% Pd/Co₃O₄ catalyst performs nearly as well. Complete conversion for this catalyst is attained at 300°C and the activity remains stable over a 90-min test period.