Gold/Iron Carbonyl Clusters for Tailored Au/FeOx Supported Catalysts

A novel preparation method was developed for the preparation of gold/iron oxide supported catalysts using the bimetallic carbonyl cluster salts [NEt4]4[Au4Fe4(CO)16] and [NEt4][AuFe4(CO)16] as precursors of highly dispersed nanoparticles over different supports. A series of catalysts with different metal loadings were prepared and tested in the complete oxidation of dichlorobenzene, toluene, methanol and in the preferential oxidation of CO in the presence of H2 (PROX) as model reactions. The characterization by BET, XRD, TEM, H2-TPR, ICP-AES and XPS point out the way the nature of the precursors and the thermal treatment conditions affected the dispersion of the active phase and their catalytic activity in the studied reactions