LAUSR

The present study investigates the promotional effect of Ni addition on soot oxidation activity of Ce0.9Pr0.1O2 oxide catalysts. A series of xNi-PDC (x= 0, 3, 5, 7, 10, 15, and 20 mol%) catalysts were synthesized by solution combustion synthesis method and characterized by XRD, Raman spectroscopy and TEM analysis. XRD and SAED patterns of the catalysts show cubic fluorite structure of ceria with an average crystallite size of 6–8 nm, and only 20Ni-PDC display NiO as a secondary phase. Raman spectra of xNi-PDC catalysts display an increase in oxygen vacancies. With a minimum addition of 10 mol% Ni to PDC, i.e., the 10Ni-PDC catalyst showed optimum soot oxidation activity (T50 = 360 °C) than compared to PDC and other Ni-PDC catalysts. Lattice strain and oxygen vacancies played a key descriptor role in showing better soot oxidation activity of the 10Ni-PDC catalyst. From the soot oxidation kinetic studies, the activation energy obtained by Ozawa plots for the 10Ni-PDC catalyst is 137 kJ/mol.