NO₂ reduction with nitromethane over Ag/Y: A catalyst with high activity over a wide temperature range

Nitromethane (NM) is a very efficient reductant for converting NO ₂ to N₂ over Ag/Y: Between 140 °C and 400 °C, the N₂ yield is close to 100%. This high N₂ yield results from the ability of Ag/Y to effectively catalyze the reaction between NM and NO ₂. This high catalytic activity of Ag/Y is minimally affected by surface bound CN^-, NC^-, or acetate, all of which are stable at temperatures below ∼300 °C. At T ≥ 400 °C, there is a reaction path that yields N₂ from NM even in the absence of NO ₂. However even at 400 °C, under typical deNO _x conditions, most N₂ molecules are formed as a result of the reaction of NM and NO₂.