Novel phosphorus-doped molybdenum carbide catalyst for the reverse water-gas shift reaction

Abstract

The effect of phosphorus on the catalytic performance of molybdenum carbide for the reverse water-gas shift (RWGS) reaction was studied for the first time. It was found that the catalytic activity and selectivity of the P-doped molybdenum carbide catalysts were greatly related to their P/Mo molar ratios within a narrow range (0–0.1). It was obvious that increasing P/Mo molar ratio led to a decreased activity, but can effectively enhance selectivity. The P-doped molybdenum carbide with a P/Mo molar ratio of 0.05 was proposed to be more excellent than other P-doped molybdenum carbides in terms of both activity and selectivity, which was attributed to its higher oxophilicity and weaker affinity toward CO.

Graphical Abstract

Keywords:

• P-doped molybdenum carbide
• oxophilicity
• CO affinity
• reverse water-gas shift reaction

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 21978125), the Project of Guangdong Province Department of Education (No. 2023ZDZX3035), the Project of Liaoning Province Department of Education (No. LJKZ0376) and Liaoning BaiQianWan Talents Program.