Catalytic Decomposition Mechanism of PH₃ on 3DCuO/C and High Value Utilization of Deactivated Catalysts

Abstract With the widespread application of lithium iron phosphate batteries, the production capacity of the yellow phosphorus industry has increased sharply, and the treatment of the highly toxic by‐product PH₃ is facing severe challenges. In this study, a 3D copper‐based catalyst (3DCuO/C) that can efficiently decompose PH₃ at low temperatures and low oxygen concentrations is synthesized. The PH₃ capacity is up to 181.41 mg g⁻¹, which is superior to that previously reported in the literature. Further studies indicated that the special 3D structure of 3DCuO/C induces oxygen vacancies on the surface of CuO, which is beneficial to the activation of O₂, and then promotes the adsorption and dissociation of PH₃. The doping of P after dissociation determines the formation of Cu‐P, and the eventual conversion to Cu₃P leads to the deactivation of CuO active sites. More strikingly, due to the appearance of Cu₃P, the deactivated De‐3DCuO/C (Cu₃P/C) exhibited significant activity in the photocatalytic degradation of rhodamine B and photocatalytic oxidation of Hg⁰ (gas) and can also be a candidate as an anode material for Li batteries after modification, which will provide a more thorough and economical treatment scheme for deactivated catalysts.