The efficient recovery and reutilization of spent Pt catalysts have two huge challenges in the metallurgical and chemical industries. Herein, platinum was selectively retrieved from spent Pt/γ-Al2O3 catalysts by a microwave-assisted aqua regia digestion strategy, and the as-obtained platinum extract was utilized to prepare a novel Pt/amorphous MnOx/corrugated silica carrier (Pt/MnOx/CSC) catalyst for formaldehyde removal. To decrease consumption of toxic aqua regia, the γ-Al2O3 in the spent catalysts was converted to chemically stabile α-Al2O3 via high-temperature calcination. The high Pt leaching efficiency of 98.31% was achieved at a digestion temperature of 110oC and aqua regia concentration of 40vol%. However, the high leaching temperatures and aqua regia concentrations caused the part dissolution of α-Al2O3, and thus decreased the Pt leaching efficiency. The CSC in the Pt/MnOx/CSC catalysts served as a support, while both the Pt nanoparticles and amorphous MnOx microspheres acted as active catalysts. The synergistical effects between the Pt and amorphous MnOx endowed the composite catalysts with excellent catalytic activity, and the HCHO removal efficiency reached 100% even after five cycle tests. On the one hand, the nanostructured MnOx microspheres provided great surface areas and rich oxygen vacancies for heterogeneous catalysis. On the other hand, the Pt nanoparticles not only enhanced the low-temperature reducibilities of MnOx, but also decreased the apparent activation energies of HCHO catalytic oxidation. This work provided a new strategy for the selective recovery of platinum from spent catalysts and the reutilization of Pt-based catalysts for the HCHO thermal catalytic oxidation.
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