Catalyst for Lithium Perchlorate Decomposition

摘要

The use of metal oxide additives to modify the ability of solid propellants and other energetic materials has been the topic of much study. This work reports the enhancement of the decomposition of lithium perchlorate (LiClO_4) by means of employing Ce_xCu_((1-x))O_((1+x)) as a catalyst The Ce_xCu_((1-x))O_((1+x)) composite catalysts synthesized through the collosol-gelling method with different mole ratios were designed to strongly enhance LiClO_4 decomposition through comparison with blank tests. The synthesized catalysts were characterized by scanning electron microscope, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller, x-ray diffraction, x-ray photoelectron spectra, and H_2-TPR analyses. Results showed that a solid solution was formed in the Ce_xCu_((1-x))O_((1+x)) catalysts. The Ce_xCu_((1-x))O_((1+x)) composite catalysts showed more lattice defects, smaller crystallites, larger surface area, and more oxygen vacancies than pure CuO and CeO_2 samples because of the interaction of Ce and Cu ions. Lattice defects, especially the reduced surface sites (that is, Ce~(3+), Cu~+, and oxygen vacancies), played dominant roles in catalytic reactions of LiClO_4 decomposition. In addition, a hypothetical mechanism for LiClO_4 catalytic decomposition of the Ce_xCu_((1-x))O_((1+x)) catalyst was proposed.