Structural, magnetic and catalytic properties of Co substituted manganite nano-perovskites

In this work, structural, magnetic and catalytic properties of LaMn1-xCoxO3 (x = 0.00, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, 1.00) are investigated. The structural characterization of the samples by X-ray powder diffraction and using the X'Pert package and Fullprof program is evidence for a monoclinic structure (P21/n space group) with x = 0.5 and a rhombohedral structure (R-3c space group) for other samples: These results have been confirmed by FTIR measurements. The magnetic characterizations of the samples have been studied by magnetization measurement versus temperature and field. The structural and magnetic results show the ferromagnetic interactions of Co2+-Mn4+ for x <= 0.5 are being progressively replaced by the less effective Co2+-Co3+ and Mn4+-Co3+ interactions for x > 0.5. The catalytic activity of LaMn1-xCoxO3 was evaluated for C2H6 combustion and CO oxidation reactions. Under similar reaction conditions, the catalytic results show that the LaMn0.5Co0.5O3 nano-perovskite is the best catalyst for C2H6 combustion and CO oxidation.