Assembly and activation of supported cobalt nanocrystal catalysts for the Fischer–Tropsch synthesis

The effect of oxidative treatments on the depostion of cobalt nanocrystals (Co–NC) onto a support and subsequent ligand removal was investigated. Deposition of ε-cobalt NC led to extensive clustering of NC and low Fischer–Tropsch synthesis activity. Low-temperature oxidation of ε-cobalt NC resulted in a very uniform CoO–NC distribution and high activity whereas high-temperature oxidation to Co₃O₄ led to less uniform NC distributions and lower activity.