Exploring the Impact of Oxygen Vacancies in Co/Pr‐CeO₂ Catalysts on H₂ Production via the Water‐Gas Shift Reaction

In this study, we utilized various Pr-doped CeO₂ catalysts (Pr=5, 10, 20, and 30 wt.%) as a support medium for the dispersion of cobalt (Co) nanoparticles, aiming to investigate the impact of oxygen vacancies on the water-gas shift (WGS) reaction. Different characterization techniques were employed to understand the insights into the structure-activity relationship governing the performance of Pr doped ceria supported Co catalysts towards WGS reaction. Our findings reveal that Co/Pr-CeO₂ catalysts at optimum Pr loading (10 wt.%) exhibit a superior CO conversion (88 %) facilitated by the presence of more oxygen vacancies induced by Pr doping into the CeO₂ lattice, as opposed to the performance of the pure Co/CeO₂ catalytic system. It was also found that the highest activity was obtained at increased intrinsic oxygen vacancies and strong synergy between Co and Pr/CeO₂ support, fostering more favorable CO activation at the interfacial sites, thus accounting for the observed enhanced activity.