URANIUM-OXIDE-BASED CATALYSTS FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF VOLATILE CHLORO-ORGANIC COMPOUNDS

THE industrial release of hydrocarbons and chlorine containing organic molecules into the environment continues to attract considerable publ ic concern, which in turn has led to governmental attempts to control such emissions. The challenge is to reduce pollution without stifling economic growth(1). Chlorine-containing pollutants are known to be par ticularly stable, and at present the main industrial process for their destruction involves thermal oxidation at 1,000 degrees C, an expensi ve process that can lead to the formation of highly toxic by-products such as dioxins and dibenzofurans(2). Catalytic combustion at lower te mperatures could potentially destroy pollutants more efficiently (in t erms of energy requirements) and without forming toxic by-products, Cu rrent industrial catalysts are based on precious metals that are deact ivated rapidly by organochlorine compounds(3). Here we report that cat alysts based on uranium oxide efficiently destroy a range of hydrocarb on and chlorine-containing pollutants, and that these catalysts are re sistant to deactivation, We show that benzene, toluene, chlorobutane a nd chlorobenzene can be destroyed at moderate temperatures (<400 degre es C) and industrially relevant flow rates.