Pilot-Scale Oxidation Catalysts

Catalytic oxidation of contaminants in air and water remains a key unit operation available to NASA. Its advantages include production of high-quality effluents, good microbial control, and extremely low expendable rates. Extensive research by both NASA and industry demonstrates an order of magnitude more activity for catalysts supported on carbon versus any other support. Carbon supported noble metal catalysts have previously shown susceptibility to physical degradation (due to shear forces and metal leaching) and chemical degradation (by oxidation of solid carbon). Previous studies have demonstrated that at small (bench) scale, physically robust catalysts can be manufactured that could provide a significant advancement in performance. The purpose of this effort is to accomplish several innovations that will allow the catalysts to be produced at a scale that is suitable for direct integration into NASA's water processor hardware.