Rapid Discrimination of Adsorbed Oxygen and Lattice Oxygen in Catalysts by the Cataluminescence Method

Adsorbed oxygen and lattice oxygen are crucial parameters for catalyst characterization and catalytic oxidation mechanism. Therefore, rapid discrimination of adsorbed oxygen and lattice oxygen is highly desired. Herein, a direct correlation between cataluminescence (CTL) kinetic curve and oxygen species was discovered. The adsorbed oxygen-catalyzed CTL only lasted for a few minutes, whereas the lattice oxygen-catalyzed CTL could exhibit hours of continuous luminescence. The long-term CTL was attributed to the slow migration of lattice oxygen in a slow and continuous catalytic oxidation reaction. In addition to the discrimination between the adsorbed oxygen and lattice oxygen by the CTL kinetic processes, the corresponding CTL intensity was positively proportional to their amounts. Accordingly, the developed catalytic oxidation-related CTL can be used as an indicator for rapid discrimination and determination of adsorbed oxygen and lattice oxygen in catalysts. Oxygen species detected by the proposed CTL method not only matched well with those obtained by conventional X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and O₂-temperature programmed methods but also offered some distinguished advantages, such as convenient operation, fast response, and low cost. It can be expected that the established oxygen-responsive CTL probe has great potential in distinguishing adsorbed oxygen and lattice oxygen in various catalysts.