The role of cerium in the oxidation of ethanol over SnO2-supported molybdenum oxides

The role of Ce in the system Ce-Mo-Sn-O was studied by means of catalytic oxidation of ethanol. The catalysts were obtained from precipitation of SnCl4 by addition of ammonia in the presence of (NH4)(2)Mo7O24 and Ce(NO3)(3). Mo concentration was fixed at 8 wt.%, and Ce at 0, 1, 2.7 wt.%. These catalysts were characterized by XRD, DRS-UV, TPR, CO2 adsorption and Mo superficial measurement. It was verified that the presence of Ce changes not only the texture and the Mo species, but also the basic properties of the Sn-Mo system. The results have also shown that cerium increases both activity and selectivity to acetic acid and acetaldehyde. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.