Abstract: The catalytic performance of Au/Fe2O3, Au/Co3O4, Au/ZrO2, and Au/ZrO2-CeO2 catalysts for preferential oxidation of CO (CO PROX) was investigated, and the catalysts were characterized by high resolution transmission electron microscopy,X-raydiffraction, andX-rayphotoelectron spectroscopy. The effect of the interaction between Au and the supports on the electronic properties of Au was discussed. CO was totally converted at the temperature not higher than 60 ℃ over Au/Fe2O3 catalyst, and the selectivity for CO PROX was about 50%; while the other catalysts showed worse catalytic performance. The positive inductive effect of supports (such as Fe2O3 and Co3O4), which could make Au bearing some positive charge, was supposed to be the key factor for the catalyst activity in CO PROX. The catalyst activity could be improved by choosing or modifying the supports to get suitable positive charge of Au.

Key words: hydrogen-rich gas, carbon monoxide, preferential oxidation, gold, supported catalyst, iron trioxide, cobaltosic oxide, zirconia, ceria