Size and Shape Dependent Catalytic Activation Energy of Different Nano Structures

Abstract

In the present work, we report the effect of size and dimension on catalytic activation energy (E C) of some dioxide nano structured materials using a simple analytical model. We report the variation of catalytic activation energy with the size from 1 nm to 30 nm and 0-,1-,2- dimensions of TiO 2, CeO 2 and SnO 2 nanoparticles. The catalytic activation energy decreases as the size of these nanoparticles decreases and is minimum for zero dimensional structure of all considered materials. We show that the nano sized TiO 2 has the minimum value of catalytic activation energy indicates its being better catalyst than other nanostructures. The shape dependence of catalytic activation energy has also been discussed. The particles having tetrahedral shape exhibit minimum catalytic activation energy, thus they show better efficiency as catalysts.