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Modulating the Hierarchical Pore Structure and Surface Chemistry of Ru/Beta Catalyst by Alkaline Etching to Facilitate the o-Dichlorobenzene Oxidation

  • Binglin Xin 1,   
  • Shuting Wei 1,   
  • Xiaonan Guo 1,   
  • Ying Wei 1, 2,   
  • Jingbo Jia 1, 2,   
  • Runduo Zhang 1, 2, *

Received: 28 May 2026 | Revised: 13 Jul 2026 | Accepted: 15 Jul 2026 | Published: 30 Jul 2026

Abstract

To resolve issues such as insufficient low-temperature activity and the formation of polychlorinated byproducts during the catalytic combustion of o-dichlorobenzene (o-DCB), Ru/Beta catalysts were treated with four etching strategies (NaOH, Na2CO3, NH4F, and HNO3) to modify their pore structure and surface chemistry, thereby elucidating the impact of these etching strategies on catalytic performance. The results indicate that the NaOH etching technique constructed a micro-mesoporous interconnected multi-level pore structure while preserving the integrity of the framework Al, significantly increasing the specific surface area and promoting the high dispersion of Ru species through the grafting effect of the framework Al. NH3-TPD and H2-TPR results show that the Ru/Beta-NaOH catalyst possesses both abundant acidic sites and strong redox capabilities. The acidic sites guide Cl species toward the HCl product, effectively suppressing the formation of Cl2 and polyhalogenated byproducts, while the strong redox ability accelerates the deep oxidation of o-DCB. Molecular dynamic simulations further indicate that the hierarchical pore structure effectively alleviates the diffusion limitation of polyhalogenated byproducts, enabling a facilitated reaction. Compared to the unetched Ru/Beta catalyst, the Ru/Beta-NaOH catalyst exhibits a 50 °C lower activation temperature, with a significant reduction in polychlorinated byproducts and improved stability. This catalyst achieves synergistic optimization of active sites and pore engineering, providing a theoretical basis for the development of catalysts for the efficient degradation of macromolecular chlorinated aromatics.

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Xin, B.; Wei, S.; Guo, X.; Wei, Y.; Jia, J.; Zhang, R. Modulating the Hierarchical Pore Structure and Surface Chemistry of Ru/Beta Catalyst by Alkaline Etching to Facilitate the o-Dichlorobenzene Oxidation. Environmental Science and Geoscience 2026, 1 (1), 3.
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