Effect of Zirconia on the Physicochemical Properties of Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 Catalyst

Catalytic hydrogenation of CO2 to liquid fuel using copper based catalyst is an attractive way to recycle and
utilize CO2. Zirconia-promoted copper-zinc oxide/alumina catalysts (CZAZ) were prepared by the co-precipitation
method. The catalyst was characterized by temperature-programmed reduction (TPR), field emission scanning electron
microscopy-energy dispersive analysis (FESEM-EDX) and N2 adsorption–desorption. The results showed that addition
of ZrO2 reduced the surface area and porosity of the catalyst. The reducibility of the metal oxides formed after
calcination of catalyst samples was also affected due to change in metal-support interaction. However the addition of
zirconia led to a better dispersion of the active metal on the surface of support material.