Complete Oxidation of Volatile Organic Compounds Over Spent Vanadium-Based Catalyst.

The catalytic oxidation of benzene and toluene (VOCs) was carried out in order to assess the properties and catalytic activities of spent vanadium-based catalyst and that modified with copper and manganese. The properties of the prepared catalysts were characterized by the Brunauer Emmett Teller (BET) surface area method as well as X-ray diffraction (XRD), Attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR), and Scanning electron microscopy-Energy dispersive X-ray (SEM-EDX) analyses. The experimental results showed that oxalic acid treatment significantly affected the activity of the spent vanadium-based catalyst, ultimately attributing to the removal of catalyst poison such as sulfur and the even redistribution of catalyst components. Moreover, the addition of copper or manganese to the spent vanadium base catalyst treated with oxalic acid (SVO) enhanced its catalytic activity.